Risk Factors For Lower Back Pain

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Many people suffer from lower back pain but take it for granted. Pain in the lower back can be associated with many serious ailments, such as osteoarthritis and sacroiliac joint dysfunction. Prevention of lower back pain begins with understanding the risk factors.

Sedentary Lifestyle

Many office workers sit at their desks for hours without taking a break. Not only is this practice bad for your health, but it also affects your spine. Sitting exerts a lot of pressure on your spine and may lead to herniated discs. This is the reason it causes back pain. You should take a break every hour or so from your sitting position to relax your back muscles. Make sure you stretch your back during these short breaks.

Another sedentary lifestyle that contributes to lower back pain is a lack of physical activity. Regular exercise keeps your muscles and spine strong and flexible. Some recommended practices for the lower back include walking, swimming, and yoga.

Age

Lower back pain primarily afflicts persons aged between 40 and 60 years. During this age bracket, a person losses bone strength because of osteoporosis. As a result, they sustain fractures, and their muscle tone decreases. Additionally, your intervertebral discs start losing fluid with age. This makes them unable to cushion the vertebrae. Old age also increases your risk of suffering from spinal stenosis.

Poor Posture

Another cause of lower back pain is poor posture. This weakens the tissues in your back. The muscles, joints, and discs in your back are pushed beyond their limit by poor posture. As a result, you experience back pain.

Hunching for a long time while standing or sitting at your desk for hours strains your abdominal muscles. The result is low blood supply and stiffness in the lower back. Furthermore, sitting in the wrong posture causes your spine to bend forward. This forward bend pressures your spinal disks and results in herniation.

Lifting objects with the wrong posture can also lead to herniation. This leads to lower back pain. Correcting your posture doesn't take time and is the best way to avoid these complications. Learn to sit and walk upright, and avoid sitting for a prolonged time without a break. Also, learn to lift objects without exerting pressure on your lower back.

In Closing

Other risk factors associated with lower back pain include obesity, smoking cigarettes, and genetics. If you are experiencing lower back pain, consult a chiropractor—such as Eric Schmetterling DC—for diagnosis and treatment. For mild cases, your practitioner will suggest exercises that will align your back and relieve pain.

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22 August 2022

Getting My Back Fixed

One day, in the middle of helping my kids to clean up the house, I lifted a box weird and threw out my back. It was frustrating, but I assumed that it would go away on its own. I was wrong. After trying everything I could think of to resolve the problem, my back still hurt and I couldn't stand up straight. After a week of suffering, I made the decision to meet with a chiropractor. He inspected my back, took x-rays, and figured out that I had slipped a disc. I started a grueling physical therapy routine, but after a few days, things started to improve. Read this blog to learn more about chiropractors.