By Michael D. Clark
Enquirer staff writer

Shannice Clark, 15, a sophomore at Withrow University High School tries on backpacks at Dick's Sporting Goods in Springdale.. (Craig Ruttle/The Enquirer)

Some students say they feel as if they are carrying the weight of the world on their backs, when what they really need to do is take a close look at what they use daily to haul their school books around.

The modern-day school backpack, if properly used, is a blessing, but can quickly turn into a painful and potentially harmful burden if not used correctly.

Add to the mix young people's often skewed sense of priorities, where being cool is more important than following the rules for proper use, and that backpack can cause chronic neck, shoulder and back pain.

"It started slowly," said Jaenea Foster of the pain she began to notice after her school days at Cincinnati's Hughes High School for the Health Professions.

"I had the same backpack for four years and my science and math books got heavier and heavier each year. I started to notice the heavier my books, the more my shoulders hurt," said Jaenea, who this month starts her senior year at Hughes.

Studies in recent years on chronic pain and injuries related to backpacks show they are increasingly being stuffed with more school and personal electronic equipment such as computer laptops, CD players and cell phones.

A 2002 Italian study of school students revealed that the average backpack load was 22 percent of the students' body weight, which exceeds the recommended 10 to 20 percent that manufacturers and doctors recommend for young, growing bodies.

Moreover, 80 percent of students surveyed reported fatigue when walking with their backpacks, and more than 50 percent saying they suffered back pain in the last two to three years from their packs.

Dr. Mark Goddard, chairman of the physical medicine and rehabilitation department of the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, said many students could find who's to blame for their discomfort by looking in the mirror.

"A lot of kids - because of culture or style - like to wear their backpacks low and loose near their waist, but that's putting too much weight distribution on their lumbar spine area or lower back," explained Goddard.

A new option growing in popularity among teens is a carrying pack on rollers, favored for years by adult business executives.

"It's kind of trendy now. A lot of students think it's cooler and a lot easier to get their stuff around," said Madeira High School sophomore Benjamin Woodhouse.

Jaenea bought into the trend early - and her shoulder pain is a distant memory.

"Last year I got a pack with wheels," she said.

"Some of the other students made fun of me, but I didn't care because I felt great."

E-mail mclark@enquirer.com