An official at the ministry of health warned against overloaded backpacks and said the ministry has plans to raise awareness about the healthy weight of schoolbags for children.
Dr. Behzad Damari said in an interview with ISNA that the standard weight of a backpack should be only 10% of the student's weight. He told parents to avoid stuffing extra load into their children's backpacks. He stressed that nonstandard weight could lead to a variety of health problems such as harmful changes in the cardiovascular system as well as an increase in shoulder and back pains.
The official said there will be plans to educate families about the standard weight of backpacks such as random weighing of students' backpacks at schools to make sure they are safe. He further emphasized the importance of good quality backpacks for children to maintain a healthy posture.
The healthy backpack study was conducted by the physical education department of the ministry of science.
