Why you SHOULD splurge on a new backpack

Studies show that fitting your child each year with the right-sized backpack for his/her growing body is the best way to prevent back pain, that now strikes about three in every four children. Not only will it prevent problems with growing spines, neck, and shoulder muscles, it will prevent children from developing back pain as they get older, a problem 80% of adults currently struggle with.

A properly fitted backpack should:

1. End just a few inches above the waist

2. Have well-padded shoulder straps

3. Be filled with no more than 15% of his/her body weight (15 pounds for a 100 pound child)