by Carrie Hudson

What’s your number? 25, 30, 31, 35, 37? No, not your Sleep Number; the weight of your backpack. According to Simmons College Graduate Program in Physical Therapy, 55 percent of students carry backpacks that weigh too much for their body.

Twenty-five pounds of text books, folders, and binders on average rests on a student’s back each day while walking across STA’s quad and trudging up and down three flights of stairs.

Although little research has been conducted on backpack related injuries, orthopedic specialists from Children’s Mercy Hospital claim that students should only carry 10 to 15 percent of their bodyweight on their back. The heavier the backpack, the more strain is caused, and the bigger the chance one has of injuring her spine. The pressure of the weight of backpacks on students’ backs is not the only unhealthy aspect.

‘It is important to note that it is not the weight alone that affects a person,’ orthopedic nurse at Children’s Mercy Hospital Andrea White said. ‘It is the long periods of time backpacks are carried and the heavy load that make the perfect environment for overuse injuries similar to what a skilled athlete may experience.’

A loaded backpack can adjust the natural alignment of your neck and spine. This can also be caused by the way a student lifts her backpack.

‘If you don’t use proper form [when lifting] you could definitely injure yourself,’ White said.

The strain put on backs from the weight of bags is not the most common backpack related injury.

‘Our most common injury [with backpacks], actually, is people tripping over their big heavy backpacks,’ White said.

Some students don’t go to their lockers between classes. They choose to let their lockers sit empty while more weight is forced upon their backs, shoulders, and arms.

‘It’s too much of a hassle to go to my locker,’ freshman Kelly Stokes said.

Even though some backs are aching across campus from the amount of pressure on backs, girls have learned to deal with it because it is part of STA.

‘I guess I’ve gotten used to it,’ Stokes said. ‘It could be a lot easier, but I mean we just have to do it so I just have to live with it.’

‘Carrying my backpack across the quad for five days definitely isn’t fun,’ sophomore Shannen Freeman said. ‘My shoulders hurt and my back aches after the day is over. It’s not one of my favorite things to do, but it’s one of the things where you just need to tough it up. It’s part of STA life.’

Years of STA girls have dealt with pressure on their backs from their heavy bags. Ms. Kelly Shuss, 2004 STA graduate, believes that four years of lugging around her backpack prepared her for college; she was better at carrying her books and projects around the K-State campus.

‘By the time I was a senior I was used to carrying books and hiking up the stairs,’ Shuss said.

The type of backpack and the way it is carried can lessen the amount of pressure put on a student’s back.

‘Use both straps because it balances out the weight,’ White said. ‘You want the wide padded straps, not the little skinny straps.’

White said to utilize the backpack’s compartments and pockets, and to organize the contents. Arrange it so that the largest items are located the closest to the back, and the smallest up front.

The STA administration realizes that backpack problems could be resolved with the use of technology. Electronic textbooks on student laptops next year is one of the possible solutions.