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Back Pain And Injury Prevention

Author: Robert Smith
by Robert Smith
Posted: Oct 19, 2014
back pain

Depending which statistics you look at, it’s estimated that more than 80 percent of Americans experience some type of back pain at some point in their lives. Sometimes the pain can be short term. Other times the pain becomes chronic and debilitating. There are a number of factors that contribute to back pain including posture, improper lifting, excessive body weight, the types of shoes one wears and the way one sits. Chronic pain is often originally caused by an injury. Even as the injury heals, the body’s pain receptors become hyper sensitized resulting in a constant sensation of pain that varies from moderate to severe.

Back pain can be a dull, nagging ache to painful spasms that make it extremely difficult to function. Sometimes movement is possible even if it’s on the uncomfortable side. Other times only the slightest movement can cause agonizing pain.

The back is a fragile part of the body. The perception is that the spine and the muscles surrounding it is the strongest part of the body when in reality it could be argued that area is the weakest. It’s one of the body parts that is most easily injured and sometimes it doesn’t take much to damage the area. While sometimes it’s impossible to prevent back pain, there are some proactive steps you can take to reduce the chance of injury or preventing pain before it starts.

Strong muscles don’t get injured as easily. It’s important to keep exercising. Exercise helps strengthen the muscles in the back and, if done properly, can also build flexibility. More flexible muscles are less prone to tears and strains. The exercise doesn’t have to be of the fitness enthusiast variety. Simple walking, the regular kind but at a brisker pace, is also good for you back since walking engaging the core stabilizing muscles of the back and abdomen.

If you have a job that requires you to stand in one spot for extended periods of time, relieve some of the pressure off your lower back by resting one foot on a low stool. It’s suggested that you do this on alternate feet every 15 to 20 minutes. This isn’t always practical, but periodically shifting your weight this way several times a day will still give your lower back a break.

Stretch regularly. Lengthening the muscles of your back with simple stretches will give them more flexibility and can reduce strains and tears.

Lift correctly. Many back injuries and back pain is caused by strained muscles due to lifting the wrong way. As mentioned, your back is not as strong as you think. It can’t handle the weight of anything heavy, but your legs can. This is why it’s important that you always lift with your legs keeping your back straight and the object you’re lifting close to your body. Bending over to lift something puts an incredible amount of pressure on the back as does twisting. Pulling a heavy object is also a cause of back pain and it’s always better to push than pull a heavy object.

If you are based in San Diego, you should check out the website listed below:

Back Pain San Diego

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Author: Robert Smith
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Robert Smith

Member since: Mar 26, 2014
Published articles: 313

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