Area Child Killed by Unwieldy Backpack.....

Lexington, KY- Chiropractic Pediatricians are warning parents of the dangers of heavy backpacks after a 5-year-old Kentucky kindergarten student died from total spinal collapse (Accordion syndrome) on Friday.

Kentucky backpack victim Clarinet Applebee's, shown here mere seconds before her entire spinal column collapsed.

"We are seeing massive numbers of children with early-onset back, neck and shoulder pain," American Pediatric Chiropractic College (APCC) President Scott Shaw explains. "Backpack stress also impairs the function of spinal nerves, which can lead to organ malfunction. Death is still a rare outcome, but I expect to see more as backpack engineers continue to focus on load bearing capacity rather than safety."

Historically, backpacks were only about the size of a loaf of breast or a small poodle, and were only able to carry a small textbook, a few notebooks, and perhaps a calculator before tearing. Using synthetic fabrics and space age metamaterials, modern backpacks can easily handle several full size books, a laptop computer, a full pencil case, and a mellophone. Combined with the popular trend of single shoulder carriage, kids with heavy backpacks are often just one Trapper Keeper away from catastrophe. In fact, a study conducted near Harvard found that the typical American child carries the equivalent of an adult bull elephant to school every day, and that nearly all of them will eventually admit to experiencing back pain at some point in their lives.

As the crisis continues to worsen, some states are proactively passing laws to compel schools to act. According to Shaw, legislators in nearby Tennessee recently voted to install scales at all school entrances, and if a backpack weighs more than 10% of the child's body weight, an alarm will sound and a designated staff member will assist the child in carefully removing heavier items. "Nobody wants to wait until after we've had to dig mass graves for toddlers to do something about a problem."

The APCC has released a list of questions so that parents and teachers can identify children effected by heavy backpacks and seek appropriate chiropractic care:

1. Is your child/student complaining of headaches, neck or back pain, or intermittent fullness of the bladder or bowels.
2. Does your child/student have difficulty paying attention at home or in school, sometimes becoming distracted by more interesting objects or activities?
3. Has your child/student ever had any medical problems involving absolutely any part of their body?
4. Does your child/student's entire body lean to one side, seemingly defying the laws of physics like in those old V8 commercials?
5. Has your child/student's spine begun to collapse and expand over and over again like an accordion?