Back pain is pervasive among American adults, however it is not uncommon among children and teens. In a new and disturbing trend, young children are suffering from back pain much earlier than previous generations, and the use of overweight backpacks is a contributing factor, according to the American Chiropractic Association (ACA).

Back pain among youngsters isn’t surprising when you consider the disproportionate amounts of weight they carry in their backpacks—often slung over just one shoulder. A recent study found that the average child carries a backpack that would be the equivalent of a 39-pound burden for a 176-pound man, or a 29-pound load for a 132-pound woman. Of those children carrying heavy backpacks to school, 60 percent had experienced back pain as a result.

Another study showed that the longer a child wears a backpack, the longer it takes for a curvature or deformity of the spine to correct itself.

The results of these studies are especially important as more and more school districts— many of them in urban areas—remove lockers from the premises, forcing students to carry their books with them all day long.

The problem has become so widespread, in fact, that some states have passed legislation that would force school districts to develop ways of reducing the weight of students’ backpacks. Limiting the backpack’s weight to no more than 10 percent of a child’s body weight and urging the use of ergonomically correct backpacks are possible solutions.

Presented as a service to the community by: Union County Chiropractic Clinic, 110 Skyline Drive, Maynardville, TN (865) 992-7000 www.unioncountychiropractic.com.