Families For Life | Ergonomic School Bags: Are They Worth the Price Tag?

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With the school season starting soon, you are probably looking to buy school bags for your young ones. However, with the vast number of options out there, you may be confused as to which is the best for your child. Besides caving in to their demands for their favourite cartoon character emblazoned on the bag, ergonomics is important to ensure that comfort is protected and growth is not affected!

Jennifer Liaw, a senior principal physiotherapist at the Department of Physiotherapy, Singapore General Hospital (SGH) shares tips on choosing the right school bag for your child.

Weight of school bag

The general guideline from Health Promotion Board (HPB) is for children to carry no more than 15 per cent of their bodyweight. In practice, that would generally mean no more than 3.5kg to 5kg for a child in the first few years of school.

9 elements of a good backpack

• Waist belt. It distributes the load across the hips if the load is heavy and adds extra stability, reducing the stress on the shoulders and neck.

• Padded and ventilated backrest. This would make carrying the bag more comfortable.

• Waterproofing. This is to prevent rain or sweaty backs from ruining the items.

• Compression straps. Use the compression straps to keep the load snug and compact against the back.

• Pockets and magnetic flaps. It makes access to bottles and pencil cases much easier. No need to worry about closing the bag.

• Compartments instead of a single top loading opening. Compartments help to organise the contents and hold the items snugly against the torso.

• Sternum belt. The sternum belt will hold the shoulder straps in place.

• Wide, padded straps. Thin straps can cut into the shoulders, making the bag uncomfortable to carry.

• Backpack fitted to the torso length. The backpack should rest between the C7 vertebrae which is the first and most prominent bone on the spine when you bend your neck forward, and the top of the hip bone (iliac crest). Rest your hands on your hip with the thumbs on the back. The place where the thumbs rest is where you want the bag to rest. If the bag is longer than the torso, there would not be an ergonomic fit. The torso length determines whether you need a small, medium or large backpack.

Read on for more tips on choosing a good backpack!