When choosing a school bag, students may take into account anything from fashion to function. But many may not consider how their school bags can affect their health.
Dr. Timothy S. Honigman, chief of staff at the Student Health Center, said excess loads from school bags affect mostly the upper body.
Honigman said as students pick up their bags, they strain their trapezius, a muscle located on the shoulder and extending to the neck, as well as their deltoid muscles.
“As students walk, weight is constantly applied directly to the trapezius muscle, which leads to pain in those areas,” said Honigman.
Honigman said an overloaded bag is one that is difficult to lift by the strap with one hand.
“It depends on the size and strength of the student. If students cannot pick it up with one hand, it is probably too heavy,” said Honigman.
Honigman said possible long-term consequences include chronic shoulder pain, muscle aches and minor headaches.
However, extensive walking with a bag is not the problem, Honigman said.
“Obviously, if the weight is 40 or 50 pounds and the student has to walk over a hill to get to class, it can be a problem,” he said. “It’s not the walk, it’s the weight.”
Dennis Newman, a creative writing senior, thinks his daily walking with his school bag affects his back.
“If I didn’t have to walk as far, I don’t think it would be as bad,” said Newman.
Honigman does not recommend a particular brand of backpack, but he recommends the traditional style as opposed to the single-strapped bags.
Backpacks carried over one shoulder have become fashionable, but doctors say this posture puts further stress on the back and spinal cord of the backpack carrier.
“There is no question that double-strap backpacks spread out the burden [of the bag],” he said.
Honigman said students have come to the Student Health Center with back pain from their single-strap bags, and he suggested that they switch the shoulder they use to carry the bag.
“Students also wear the traditional bags with one shoulder. That’s not what it was meant for,” said Honigman.
Amber Guidry, a kinesiology sophomore, has a single-strapped bag and said it hurts her shoulder and back.
“I might get a regular bag soon; I really don’t like it,” she said.
Tonya Boyance, a biological sciences freshman, said one day she came home with a large bruise on the shoulder that was carrying the load of her bag.
Boyance attributed the bruise on her shoulder to her single-strap bag that puts pressure on her shoulders in the distance she walks to class.
“I didn’t think of the strain it would put on my shoulder when I bought the bag,” said Boyance.
Not all students seem to be affected by the single-strap bags.
“As long as I keep the bag light, it’s not a problem,” said Travis Poydras, an electrical engineering freshman.
Backpack users also can help prevent injuries by following the backpack usage guidelines of the American Chiropractic Association.
These guidelines state individuals should wear bags with wide, padded straps and that they should wear both straps to ensure that the backpack is buckled to the waist by the belts at its base. This helps distribute the weight of the backpack to the lower part of the body.
The bag also should not hang more than four inches below the waistline or it can add to the weight on the shoulders.
Honigman suggests ice for treating a recent backpack injury. He recommends heat for chronic back pain.
“The obvious treatments are rest and reducing the weight,” of the school bag, said Honigman.