School Bag-Related Factors and Their Implications for Walking and Cycling to School among New Zealand Adolescents

Excessive school bag weight may be a modifiable barrier to active transport to school. This study examined correlates of school bag weight and adolescents’ perceptions of excessive school bag weight for walking and cycling to school among New Zealand adolescents living in diverse settlement types. Adolescents (n = 1512; 15.0 ± 1.3 years) completed a questionnaire and had their bag weight (n = 1190) and body weight (n = 1038) measured. Adolescents using active transport and rural adolescents had lighter school bags compared to their counterparts. One-third of adolescents reported excessive school bag weight for walking (31.2%) and cycling (37.2%) to school. Positive correlates of relative school bag weight were female gender (regression coefficient (95% CI): 0.53 (0.13, 0.93)), and underweight (2.21 (1.39, 3.02)), whereas negative correlates were Māori ethnicity (−0.87 (−1.41, −0.32)), overweight (−1.84 (−2.35, −1.34)) and obesity (−3.57 (−4.26, −2.87)), and school location in small urban areas (−2.10 (−4.19, −0.01)), and rural settlements (−3.58 (−5.66, −1.49)). Older adolescents, females, those with greater relative school bag weight, and those experiencing school bag-related pain symptoms and/or fatigue were more likely to report excessive school bag weight for both walking and cycling to school. Future initiatives should target reducing excessive school bag weight, particularly in female and urban adolescents.