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Get Back In Action Eighty percent of Americans will suffer from back pain. Here's how to keep from being one of them 
Cold and flu season may be upon us, but that isn’t the only reason Americans end up on their backs, feeling miserable. “Low-back pain is the second most common reason for visits to a primary care physician, outnumbered only by the common cold,” says Dr. Karen Erickson, a chiropractor in New York City. “Studies show that about 80 percent of Americans will suffer from back pain at some time in their lives.” While some back pain is caused by non-preventable factors such as traumatic accidents, congenital defects and tumors, Erickson, a spokesperson for the American Chiropractic Association (ACA), says “the majority of low back pain is preventable.” Erickson and Dr. Thomas Weida, a physician and professor of family and community medicine, Penn State Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, Penn., offer solutions to avoid the four most common causes of back injury: 1. Inactivity “Many have sedentary lifestyles, with long periods of time seated at work as well as at play,” Erickson says. Such inactivity can lead to preventable back pain. In the workplace, the ACA recommends that you stand up and stretch your legs with a short walk about every 20 to 30 minutes. And take micro-breaks often, stretching your neck, arms and wrists, back and legs. Simple stretches include neck rotations, fist clenches, arm dangles and shoulder shrugs. While regular exercise like swimming and walking can benefit your back, overcompensating with exercise on the weekend is not a solution. Weida calls this “the weekend warrior syndrome - where you’re at a desk job all week and you think you can do all sorts of things during the weekend without regular exercise. Basically you’re not going to do real well if you try to stack three cords of wood during the weekend when normally the heaviest thing you stack is pencils on your desk.” He suggests stretching a little bit before hand “so you’re not going from 0 to 60 in your Volkswagen of a body.” 2) Control Your Weight For a healthier back, the ACA suggests keeping within 10 pounds of your ideal weight. Avoid the “beer belly,” which puts unwanted pressure on the muscles, ligaments and tendons. Eating a sensible diet is the most efficient and effective way to reduce weight, the ACA says. Weida says that if you are overweight, you need to be even more careful that you apply proper lifting techniques. “Being overweight, you’re more likely to have a back injury from being de-conditioned,” he says. 3) Lift Right “When you lift, you want to be using your legs, holding the item close to your body,” Weida says. “You particularly want to avoid a lift and twist. That’s where I see a lot of people get into trouble. They’ll lift something and twist their back to put it on a shelf or something. They need to move their feet instead.” When lifting from the floor, the ACA suggests keeping your back straight and lifting with the legs. Avoid bending over at the waist and lifting with the muscles of your lower back. As you lift, keep your elbows flexed, head up and neck straight. 4) Your Body is a Temple “Smoking impairs blood flow, resulting in oxygen and nutrient deprivation to spinal tissues,” Erickson says. “Muscles are much more irritable with more caffeine,” Weida says. “I’m not talking one or two cups. I’m talking about the guy who does the gallon of iced tea or a pot of coffee. Caffeine restricts muscles. I find it makes much more back spasms and delays healing if they are injured.” Outside the body, backpacks and fashion can clash with your spine. “Fashion-conscious women carry purses heavy enough to need rollers, and children too often carry book bags that trigger muscle strains,” Erickson says. |
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