Back pain is extremely common. Here is advice on why this form of pain occurs and what you can do about it.
Nearly 80% of Americans experience a backache at least once during their lives, according to the US National Library of Medicine. Obviously that’s an incredible statistic, and it’s backed up by numbers showing that lower back pain is second only to the common cold among complaints leading to doctor visits.
Typically back pain is acute rather than chronic, which roughly means that the average person will recover in less than 90 days. Frequently a hurt back is part of an ongoing series of attacks, but generally a person will completely recover from each back strain or sprain. Despite the overall success in treating short-term pain, acute back pain eventually becomes chronic in as many as 2 in 5 people.
The best way to care for your body when you have a backache is all-natural and simple, notes general practitioner Ann Robinson, MD. “Despite a host of treatment options including … manual therapies, drugs, injections and surgery, nothing is more likely to work than staying active,” she says. “Just when you least feel like it, and it hurts the most, is when experts say you have to get moving.”
Reasons for a backache
It is not always easy for doctors to figure out specifically why your back is hurting. Many describe the lower back pain of patients as “nonspecific” – meaning that there is no other major diagnosis involved (such as cancer, osteoarthritis, or broken bones).
Often a hurt back results from issues with the muscles or other components of the lower back, explains chiropractor Shanthini Fonseka. “The root cause of most back pain is early degeneration caused by overuse or excessive force, bad posture, lack of resting time or lack of essential nutrition leading to mechanical problems of the spine,” she says. People are likelier to experience lower back pain if they have excess weight, use tobacco, are pregnant, are diagnosed with depression, or are prescribed steroids.
Back pain that indicates other issues
People may experience back pain when they have abdominal conditions such as aortic aneurysms, ulcers, or kidney stones. However, in those situations, other symptoms should exist to point to the root cause of the pain.
Chiropractic care & other treatment options
Are you suffering from back pain? At Advanced Wellness & Rehab, we combine the strengths of chiropractic care, spinal decompression, and physical therapy to expedite recovery. See our New Patient Offer.
