WE don't give our backs that much attention, until they start playing up.

But this very important part of the body still needs looking after to prevent problems flaring up later on.

Alarming new research has found that back pain - usually associated with the older generation - is being increasingly reported by schoolchildren.

The survey, by the healthier back charity BackCare, found that nearly half of school children questioned said they sometimes suffered from back pain.

Their findings mark Back Care Week which ends tomorrow.

Eight per cent of older school children said they had chronic or recurrent pain, bad enough to affect things like their ability to play sport and their self esteem.

York osteopath Alan Apling, who practises at the York Clinic For Complementary Medicine, said: "In my clinics I am seeing an increasing incidence of younger people who report with low and upper back pain.

"Many of the problems reported by adults may very well have started off from school days.

"Schools need to be more aware of the problem; barking stop slouching, or sit up straight is not good enough. Both staff and students need to be made aware the importance of posture and exercise."

So what is causing all these problems?

One of the culprits is the school bag. BackCare found the vast majority of children were carrying too much weight in their bag, often on only one shoulder.

Poorly designed seating and desks were another problem, as was the fact many children did not have access to a locker which meant they were forced to carry too much weight between classes.

A general decline in physical activity meant they were less fit, which could lead to pain problems later on.

Medical experts would like to see extra Government investment to provide proper seating, school lockers provided for all, and health advice on better posture in schools.

Hugh Porter, head teacher of Joseph Rowntree School, York, said teachers would welcome such guidance from health professionals. "Personally, I've never had any reports on back injuries, although I have been aware of it as a concern among the medical profession," he said.

"We provide all the youngsters with the opportunity to have a locker - there are enough lockers for everyone. We encourage them to put some equipment in lockers through the day so they don't end up carrying their bags all day."

Arleen Scholten, a chiropractor at Chiropractics 1st, in The Mount, York, said back problems could start much earlier than secondary school pupils, with youngsters or primary school age suffering while they sit at desks all week.

"They get eye checks, hearing checks, but they rarely get their spines checked," she said. "You should make sure kids are sitting on the front part of their sitting bones, and make sure their shoulders aren't hunched forward.

"With back packs, make sure the weight is distributed properly and they do use shoulder straps. Carrying it on one shoulder, you easily shrug your shoulder causing a lot of tension into your neck and that shoulder."

Back care tips

Hints on helping children have healthier backs

  • Provide proper seating for children at home when they are working at a desk or computer
  • Make sure children have a school bag that has wide shoulder straps so that the load is evenly distributed on their backs
  • Make sure the school bag is not overloaded with books and other items like PE kit
  • Encourage regular exercise or sports activities.
  • Treatments like the Alexander Technique might help