Chiropractical Solutions & Massage
Back Pain - Are you At Risk?
7 Risk Factors to Consider

7 Risk Factors are:

1. Poor posture ie. sleeping,sitting, standing positions

2. lack of exercise

3. repetitive overuse

4. past major traumas ie car accidents,slips, sports injuries

5. poor eating habits ie. not drinking enough water

6. genetic predisposition ie. family members prone to injury

7. Stress

*see below for details and full article
yours in health,
Dr. Weisz,D.C.

Back Pain - Are you At Risk?
If you don't take care of your back, you could end up with a decrease in strength and elasticity of muscles and ligaments. This is a perfect set-up for injury.

The majority of back injuries are caused by mechanical issues such as poor posture with sitting, sleeping or standing...or traumas such as car accidents, slips, falls, or sports injuries.
However there are family-related behavioral tendencies, and these behaviors may be passed down from parents to children.

As we age, these may lead to back injuries.

7 Risk Factors are:

1. Poor posture ie. sleeping,sitting, standing positions

2. lack of exercise

3. repetitive overuse

4. past major traumas ie car accidents,slips, sports injuries

5. poor eating habits ie. not drinking enough water

6. genetics ie. family members prone to injury

7. Stress

There are seven main risk factors:

In many cases of acute lower back pain caused by bending, lifting and overreaching, it's from years of not conditioning the back muscles and ligaments.

Poor posture

Constant energy exerted by muscles around the spine help balance the vertebrae against gravity all the time, even when we sleep. Pay attention to your posture as you walk and sit to reduce strain against gravity and motion.

Sedentary lifestyle and Lack of exercise

When out of shape, our muscles, including those that support the spine, weaken. Strong abdominal muscles give added protection to the lower back.
Your back has a natural curve of the lower spine. However, abdominal fat can pull this part of the spine forward and downward. During pregnancy, the change in weight and where that weight is located puts a new strain on the back.

Stress

When the reactions to the demands of everyday life are extreme, our bodies react by tightening muscles. Our jaw muscles contract, our fists may clench and the back muscles tighten as if gearing up to flee. Unfortunately, all the extra muscle effort leaves less energy for our back to work smoothly doing the delicate balance of protecting the spine while permitting the flexibility and range of motion we tend to take for granted. The back's ready-or-not stressful state is a set-up for injury, as stiff back muscles cannot work efficiently.

On the job

Certain professions also put you at higher risk for back pain. Truck drivers, for example, sit for long periods. Nurses are constantly bending and reaching over beds, or they are lifting and moving patients.

Children's backpacks

A backpack overloaded with books can strain your child's back and cause muscle fatigue. More than 13,000 injuries related to backpacks were treated at doctors' offices, clinics and emergency rooms in 2000, according the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Children should bend both knees when lifting heavy packs, visit their locker or desk between classes to lighten loads or replace books, or use a backpack on wheels.

More on Acute Lower Back Pain

When to Call the Doctor

| Back pain following an accident
| Numbness or tingling in limbs
| Incontinence
| History of cancer
| High fever

Your chiropractor will be of assistance in identifying such additional risk factors.
Are there risk factors for back pain? And, if there are, what can I do to keep myself healthy and well?
1. One primary risk factor relates to exercise. Everyone has heard, "if you don't use it, you lose it". If you're not exercising regularly, your back muscles are deconditioned and much more susceptible to injury - the strains and sprains we're accustomed to calling "back pain".
Muscles get stronger when they're required to do work. Also exercise helps "train" the soft tissues around a joint - the ligaments and tendons - these supporting structures "learn" how to withstand mechanical stresses and loads without becoming injured. Basically, when you exercise - when you do any kind of exercise - your body gets "smarter" and you're less likely to get those annoying back problems.(1)
A related risk factor is weak abdominal muscles. When you were a kid, at some point one of your gym teachers probably told you to "suck in your stomach". Actually, it turns out that was pretty good advice. Your abdominal muscles support the muscles of your lower back. If your abdominals are weak or if you're not using them - letting them hang out and droop instead of keeping them activated - your body weight has to be held up by the muscles of your lower back. They're not designed to do that - they're designed to move your spine around. And eventually, these lower back muscles will give way under the excess strain. The result is a very painful lower back injury.
There are many easy-to-do exercises for your abdominal muscles. The key is to actually do them - and do them after you're finished doing the rest of whatever exercises you've scheduled for that day. How often? Three times a week is plenty. Abdominal routines are quick - no more than 10 minutes. And, remember to use your abdominal muscles throughout the day. Imagine your abdominals are being pulled in and lifted up. This is not a "tightening" - your thought should be "activate". Your body will know what to do, once you've started adding consistent abdominal training to your exercise routine.
2. Risk factors for back pain may also be found in your personal and family medical history.2,3 During your initial visit your chiropractor will ask you about accidents and surgeries you've experienced, and discuss any important elements in your family history. For example, surgery to remove an inflamed galllbladder or appendix or to repair a hernia may result in weakened abdominal muscles. A motor vehicle accident or a fall from a height may have caused injuries that healed with soft tissue scarring.
Learning about potential risk factors and taking appropriate action will help ensure a stronger, more flexible, and healthier lower back.
1Jones MA, et al. Recurrent non-specific low-back pain in adolescents: the role of exercise. Ergonomics 50(10):1680-1688, 2007
2Cherniack M, et al. Clinical and psychological correlates of lumbar motion abnormalities in low back disorders. Spine J 1)4):290-298, 2001
3Plouvier S, et al. Biomechanical strains and low back disorders. Occup Environ Med 2007 (in press)
4 http://www.healthatoz.com/healthatoz/Atoz/common/standard/transform.jsp?requestURI=/healthatoz/Atoz/dc/caz/pain/abck/abck_gen_risk.jsp

Dr. Weisz, D.C.

Chiropractical Solutions & Massage

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