Child Safety Blog

Consumer Reports recently conducted a survey in rating the most durable backpacks, and found in the survey that an average 6th grader carries a backpack weighing 18.4 pounds, but some are as heavy as 30 pounds, according to Tara Parker-Pope of the New York Times.

A medical adviser to Consumer Reports and also a board-certified neurologist, Dr. Orly Avitzur says that carrying a heavy backpack can cause low-back pain in children, and carrying the backpack on one shoulder instead of two exacerbates the problem.

Parents can consult some suggestions provided by the American Academy of Pediatrics about how to choose the best-fitting backpack and how to prevent injuries. Consumer Reports has also published its full report and buying guide.

Some of the American Academy of Pediatrics' guidelines include the following:

- Always use both shoulder straps. Slinging a backpack over one shoulder can strain muscles. Wearing a backpack on one shoulder may increase curvature of the spine.

- Tighten the straps so that the pack is close to the body. The straps should hold the pack two inches above the waist.

- Pack light. The backpack should never weigh more than 10 to 20 percent of the student's total body weight.

- Organize the backpack to use all of its compartments. Pack heavier items closest to the center of the back.

- Stop often at school lockers, if possible. Do not carry all of the books needed for the day.

- Bend using both knees, when you bend down. Do not bend over at the waist when wearing or lifting a heavy backpack.

- Learn back-strengthening exercises to build up the muscles used to carry a backpack.

- Ask your pediatrician for advice.

Posted by Patrick A. Malone | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Education , Product Liability , School Safety

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Before Kari Christiansen retained a lawyer and threatened to sue the primary school her diabetic son attends, Carter Christiansen, a second-grader, could not bring his medical supplies to school and once fell unconscious in the school hallway. In another school district, 17-year-old Jennifer Schwartz had her insulin pump snatched away – when the needle and tubing were still inserted in her body – by an unwitting teacher who thought the beeping device was a cell phone.

In a Chicago Tribune article, Carolyn Starks reports the difficulties that many diabetic schoolchildren face in managing their disease in schools. Parents are fighting for accommodations and policy changes to help young children with diabetes, which affects one in every 500 people under age 20, according to the article.

In many school districts, glucometers and other supplies that diabetic children need to use several times throughout the day are banned from school zones, or, in cases where they are allowed in schools, have to be locked away in nurses' cabinets. The needles in these devices, which are the smallest needles in the world – are thought to be dangerous.

To help diabetic students manage the disease at school, physicians and lawyers have joined force with parents to make these children’s need known. Dr. Patrick Zeller, endocrinologist, and Ed Kraus, associate professor at Chicago-Kent School of Law, are among such advocates for diabetic children.

Parents should feel comfortable about communicating to teachers and other school workers about their children’s needs. Dr. Zeller said that schools “want to do a good job” and that they are willing to help the students when they are educated about the disease. Jean Sophie, the new superintendent in Carter Christiansen’s school district, was eager to accommodate the Christiansens’ requests because she personally knows children who are diabetic. Teachers will likely be willing to make special arrangements, if notified by parents of diabetic students, such as allowing the kids to bring snacks into classroom in case of low blood sugar.

Posted by Patrick A. Malone | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Education , School Safety

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The most recent issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons has a study on teenagers' attitudes to trauma-related injuries from car crashes, showing that most of them have a "sense of invincibility and focus on fate rather than choice."

These attitudes are dangerous because, while everyone knows about the impact of drugs and alcohol on people's behavior, false beliefs can often be just as harmful as drinking too much. From the article:

researchers say existing injury prevention initiatives often fall short of countering flawed beliefs and must better demonstrate - especially to teens - how and why their young age puts them at greater risk for injury.

"Students need to comprehend that it is lack of judgment, not only lack of skill, that increases the risk of injury to one's self and others. 'Not wanting something bad to happen' is simply not enough," said Najma Ahmed, MD, PhD, FACS, assistant trauma director, St. Michael's Hospital, University of Toronto. "In addition to giving teens the knowledge and teaching them the technical skills, injury prevention programs must also address teens' attitudes about being immune to illness and death as a means of changing high-risk behaviors, such as driving while impaired."

Posted by Patrick A. Malone | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Cars , Education

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