5 Simple Ways to Escape Back Pain
By Sandy Schroeder
Most of us know someone with back pain. It started with painful twinges, and now our friends struggle to just stay mobile. If you want to sidestep the whole issue, there are simple lifestyle changes that can make a difference.
HarvardHealth suggests five steps to keep the back healthy. They recommend staying fit, losing weight, learning how to lift, not smoking, and protecting the back around the clock.
How Chiropractic Can Help
The Joint Chiropractic clinic near you can help you learn more about your back as you establish new healthier lifestyle patterns. Stop by and find out how The Joint’s doctors of chiropractic make healthy backs and healthy bodies an everyday habit.
When the spine is healthy, the whole body may work better. Your chiropractor will ask about your lifestyle and health history, and may use a spinal adjustment to help you establish a new wellness base.
Weekly 15-minute spinal adjustments may keep your back pain-free and your goals on target. Get started with HarvardHealth’s five steps.
Stay fit– Exercise can strengthen and lengthen the muscles that support the back, focusing on the abdomen, back and buttock muscles. Stretching keeps the body flexible to avoid injury. Try biking, swimming and walking to keep the back strong.
Lose weight - Extra pounds load up the spine and shift the center of gravity forward if the weight becomes belly fat. This puts more pressure on the back. Lighten the back’s load with a body mass index (BMI) of 19 to 25.
Lift carefully – Keep packages or kids close to the body while lifting. Never twist or bend from the waist. Use the legs to power the lift, and get help with large items such as furniture.
Don’t smoke – Researchers say smokers encounter more back pain because nicotine blocks blood flow to discs and the vertebrae, and accelerates bone loss.
Protect the back – Don’t stand or sit in one position too long. Take breaks every 30 minutes at home and at work. At your desk, keep knees slightly higher than hips at a 90-degree angle. Support the back and shoulders with an adjustable chair, and keep feet flat on the floor with computer monitors at eye level. At home, limit heavy back-straining tasks such as vacuuming to 10 minutes at a time, and carry carefully, distributing weight to both shoulders.
When you are ready to start working on your back health, stop by The Joint Chiropractic clinic near you. Find out about affordable personal healthcare plans that require no insurance, and flexible weekend and evening hours that need no appointments. See you there.
To learn more about your health, wellness, and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Caldwell, N.J.