Letter: Bags of trouble

Sir: I read your report on schoolbags and back pain (6 October) with interest. I am now 26 and whilst I was at school, our class furniture was changed from old-style desks to new tables and lockers. The lockers were too small for the books and A4 files we used, so we were in the habit of carrying all our books, files and equipment for the day around with us.

On one occasion I arrived home heavily laden, after a nearly two-mile walk, and walked straight on to the bathroom scales. My total weight (with baggage) came to 13 stone. Since I had that morning weighed myself at six and a half stone, I was carrying about 95 per cent of my bodyweight, estimating my school uniform as 5 per cent.

I am already in occasional pain from my mid back, which I can only expect to get worse. Can anyone recommend a good osteopath in the Plymouth region?

MARY FLETCHER

Plymouth, Devon