Relieve Back Pain with These Six Helpful Lifehacks

A Lancet review on Global epidemic of low back pain reported that the disease is now the leading cause of disability worldwide.

Although most people with new episodes of back pain recover quickly, two thirds will relapse within 12 months after initial recovery.

Lifestyle factors such as smoking, obesity and lack of physical activity are strongly linked to back pain, and despite all the back pain devices and supplements you can buy, it’s usually the simplest strategies that produce the best long-term results.

New Research Study at the University of Turku and Turku University Hospital in Finland, published in the journal BMJ Openfound that middle-aged people who reduced their daily sitting time prevented their back pain from getting worse over six months.

People with lower back problems often have excessive fat deposits in the back muscles as well as impaired glucose metabolism, which predisposes them to pain.

While the team didn’t show that sitting less resulted in a direct improvement in back muscle composition or metabolism, it did help relieve and prevent recurrent pain over time.

“Our participants were completely normal middle-aged adults who sat a lot, did little exercise and gained excess weight,” says physiotherapist Joa Norja, one of the study’s authors.

“These factors not only increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, but also back pain.”

Kieran O’Sullivan, physiotherapist and musculoskeletal pain and injury researcher at the University of Limerick, says a holistically healthy lifestyle is vital for our backs.

“Don’t think that back pain is just about your back,” he says. “When back pain persists, it is often related both to our overall health, including sleep, mood, stress levels and activity patterns, as well as to issues such as posture, slouching at the desk or using the wrong chair. »

Here are six simple tips to help you get rid of back pain forever:

Get up and move for five minutes every hour.

In a study by the University of Turku and Turku University Hospital, participants gradually reduced their sitting time by 40 minutes per day over six months.

Because almost three-quarters of middle-aged adults Spend more than eight hours sitting each day, which equates to five minutes of standing up every hour.

Simply sitting down will help your back, but Nora states in the study that “it’s important to note that physical activity, such as walking or faster exercise, is better than just standing up.”

Walk for 30 minutes at least five days a week.

Daily walking should form the basis of any back care program.

Regular walking helped prevent worsening back pain, according to the latest BMJ Open study, which O’Sullivan said was consistent with the findings of a “large and impressive walking study last year” by Australian researchers.

“Taken together, these results suggest that walking is a really good option for people with very mild low back pain or recent back pain,” he says. “It’s cheap, effective and safe.”

In another recent study of adults For low back pain, published in The Lancet, researchers from the Macquarie University Spine Pain Research Group in Australia asked half of the participants to begin walking daily, five days a week, while the rest did no additional activity.

The walking programs were gentle at first, but after three months, most participants averaged 130 minutes per week, or 26 minutes on each of the five days allotted.

After three years, the results showed that those who walked regularly had fewer episodes of debilitating pain than the control group and had longer periods without a recurrence of back problems.

Don’t spend too much money on a home office chair.

Ergonomically priced chairs may be no better for your back than a cheap office chair or even a dining chair.

“There is no conclusive evidence that the type of chair you sit in will prevent or cure your back pain,” says Wilson.

“The difference is not in the seat itself or even how well you sit in it, but in how often you get in and out of it.”

A BMJ Open study found that switching between postures is more important than maintaining perfect posture.

Wilson says there’s “no perfect sitting position,” adding that an uncomfortable office chair is often a better option than a luxuriously cushioned seat, since you’re more likely to fidget and move around in it.

Improve your sleep habits

Good quality sleep helps reduce stress hormones that can cause tension in your back muscles, and also releases anti-inflammatory compounds that help relieve back pain.

A recent review of studies in people with low back pain, published in Sleep magazinefound that “worse sleep at baseline was associated with more intense back pain and a lower likelihood of recovery from low back pain over time.”

Aim to sleep seven to eight hours a night and maintain a strict sleep schedule.

Do squats, lunges and deadlifts

Pilates has gained a reputation as the best form of exercise for preventing back pain. However, a significant review in The Lancet concluded that “no one type of exercise is better for back pain than another.”

Pilates may help some people, but no more or less than any other exercise for back pain,” says O’Sullivan.

“The best exercise is the one you do regularly, whether it’s swimming, walking or going to the gym.”

Wilson says doing lunges, deadlifts and squats at home is a great way to improve your back health.

“Fundamental strengthening exercises like these will strengthen the muscles around your hips, core, legs, buttocks and back, which is important for preventing back pain,” she says.

Add weights as you get stronger

The human spine is designed to withstand heavy loads, and with irregular loads it loses its shape.

“Now that we don’t lift and carry as much as our ancestors, lifting weights is a great way to keep our back muscles strong,” says Wilson.

For research published in a journal Sports Science, Medicine and RehabilitationPeople with low back pain were prescribed a controlled full-body resistance program consisting of squats, bench presses, deadlifts and weighted rows twice a week for four months.

The researchers tracked the participants’ pain and strength levels and, by the end of the study, reported improvements in pain levels and function, higher energy levels, and better sleep patterns as their back problems improved.

“People are worried about ‘damaging’ their back by lifting weights, but strength training is no more dangerous than other activities,” says O’Sullivan.

“With any exercise, it’s important to build up the weight gradually rather than lifting weights that are too heavy too early.”