About 8 in 10 Americans will experience back pain at one point or another. Back pain could literally cripple you and cause you to not partake or enjoy many activities. The issue could be so severe that it may leave some so stressed that it seems to control their lives.
There are many potential causes of back pain, without any being known as the primary cause factor. Here are 8 surprising causes of back pain from The Huffington Post.
“Weekend Warriors”
Irregular exercise is a big contributor to back pain, and the “weekend warriors,” those who are sedentary during the week and push hard on the weekends, are the face of this contributor to pain.
“If you take on something tough after being relatively sedentary, you can seriously hurt yourself,” explains Arya Nick Shamie, M.D., a spokesperson for the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons and an associate professor of spine surgery at the University of California – Los Angeles.
And it’s not just the risk of injury while you’re doing the activity you have to worry about. “If you are doing high-impact sports without cross-training first to strengthen your core, your spine won’t have strong enough muscles to support the impact,” says Robert S. Bray, M.D., the founding director of DISC (discmdgroup.com) and a neurological spine surgeon.
He recommends dedicating as little as 15 minutes three times a week to basic core exercises and stretching to help prepare your core for more intense workouts later in the week.
Carrying Your Child
Kids who are heavy can exert a lot of force on your spine, says Shamie, not to mention they’re often struggling and squirming, causing you to twist and bend.
There’s not an ideal position to keep them in, though some are worse than others — “having a person directly on your spine is one of the worst things you can do,” says Bray — so maybe avoid those piggy back rides.
When you’re lifting your child up (or any object, really), focus on keeping your shoulders over your pelvis as you bend your knees, and try not to move too far forward while you grab on. This will help flex your lower back, explains Shamie.
Sitting and Bending
Slouching is, of course, not great for your back. If you sit for a long period of time without proper lumbar support it puts a lot of stress on your discs, says Shamie.
“But the most pressure on your discs comes if you’re seated and lean over to pick something up, and it’s particularly hard on the lower back,” he says.
So if you drop something when you’re sitting in your desk chair, stand up to get it!
Smoking
“Smoking is horrible for your discs,” says Bray. “Discs deteriorate very rapidly in smokers, and if for some reason you have to do a fusion, it’s almost impossible to perform on someone who smokes.”
Twisting
No, not the dance (although that can contribute, if you’re really all about the Twist n’ Shout). Any activity that involved repeated rotation of your upper torso against your waist will cause micro trauma to your lower back.
“What we know is, over the years, that can put your low back at higher risk of having damage later in life,” says Shamie. “It’s cumulative.”
Spinal Health Conditions
“There are several causes of back pain that don’t show up on an MR scan and are very serious,” says Bray.
He says the most common are spinal cord tumors, tethered cord syndrome (where the tail that connects your pelvis to your spine — which usually thins, stretches out or breaks as we age — remains attached and causes pain), Team disease (a condition where the blood vessels from the front of the chest wrap around the spine and drain into the muscles, causing compression) and Arnold Chairi syndrome (a syndrome where the bottom of the cerebellum hangs too low and pushes on the top of the spinal cord).
“90 to 95 percent of back pain cases aren’t these types of situations, but if you have pain and the answer isn’t in an MRI scan, visit a well-trained neurosurgeon who can evaluate and look for these types of conditions,” says Bray.
Insufficient Sleep
Your spinal discs don’t have blood vessels bringing them nutrients, says Shamie — they are nourished by water, which depletes during the day. “You should try and get at least seven hours of sleep every night, because overnight is when your discs hydrate again,” he says.
Saggy Mattresses
A mattress that sags or dips in the center will bend the spine abnormally, says Bray. “We used to think that a very hard mattress was better, but now we know what works best is to sleep on a soft-top mattress with firm coils underneath,” he explains.
It also helps to adjust your pillow based on the way you sleep — a thicker pillow for side sleepers and a thinner one for back sleepers — to reduce neck pain.
My commentary is very simple, if your site gives your readers natural solutions or options for maintaining health or regaining health this riposte article do not match your objective!
One one hand you give us a very eye opening article ''100 Compiled Studies on Vaccine Dangers'' and on the other hand you repost a medical propaganda such as '' 90 to 95 percent of back pain cases aren’t these types of situations, but if you have pain and the answer isn’t in an MRI scan, visit a well-trained neurosurgeon who can evaluate and look for these types of conditions,” says Bray!
Neurosurgeon do neurosurgery, neurosurgery could be the answer for less than 5 % of back pain.
Chiropractic help people with neuro-musculo-skeletal disorders for more than 100 years. For spine related problems you should advise your reader to consult a doctor of chiropractic first. Chiropractic is the first health care provider using the natural approach (without drugs or surgery) in the world.
My advice to your reader having recurrent back pain or for those who want to avoid developing ones find a chiropractor in their locality, then ask to have a complete clinical physical examination. This clinical examination should include but not limited to: 1-history taking (80% of course can be found by first step procedure), 2-neurological examination, 3-orthopedic examination, 4-chiropractic static and dynamic palpation of the spine, 5-X-Ray examination (this old type examination is still the one giving the most informations (pathology wise) for less radiation and cost, compare to more elaborated and newer type of diagnostic imageries), 6- Laboratory examination (complementary if needed).
Than, this doctor of chiropractic should explain fully what is the problem with your spine including but not limited to: biomechanical abnormalities static and functional, the explanation of how he would proceed to correct it, frequency of care for the acute phase.
Once the pain is gone, he should suggest to you corrective cares (including but not limited to: exercise, changes in habits, supplementation). This type of chiropractic care help stabilize and normalize your condition and then you should take you on decision on future chiropractic preventive care if preventive care is in line with your one health objectives.
For spine related problems consult with a doctor of chiropractic first!
Dr Daniel Boisvert chiropactor, D.C.
Québec, Canada