Usual Back Pain vs. Osteoarthritis of the Spine

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Exercise to make your back strong

This can be the most effective way to help your back healthy. With strong and healthy back, you can reduce your risk of back pain. Keeping moving is also good idea to help relive back pain.

In the past, rest for the back is recommended. But today, experts agree that being as active as possible throughout the day is helpful to treat the problem.

Moderate activity such as doing your daily routines /tasks or just walking can help. On the other hand, being physically inactive for long periods of time can be counterproductive.

Yoga, pilates, and swimming are excellent choices of exercise to help make your back strong and healthy. These exercises can strengthen the muscles around the back but with low impact on the joints of your back.

Low-impact exercises are also great and recommended for many people with osteoarthritis. Once you feel that your body (especially your back) is ready and strong enough, you can choose other choices that are more energetic such as dancing, cycling, and jogging.

And it’s important to get used with regular exercise. Make sure that your exercise is a part of your lifestyle. Do the exercise most days of the week for the countless health benefits in long term!

Don’t forget stretching before exercise. It is not only important to reduce the risk of injury, increase the blood flow slowly, and good to warm up the muscles – but also great to optimally strengthen the muscles of your back when you exercise!

Other helpful lifestyle measures

  1. Sitting in the right position is so essential, particularly true if you have a job /task that can make you sit on the chair for long hours. Avoid sitting with the back not-straight!
  2. Avoid sitting continuously for long periods of time without any break! Stand up from your chair for every 45 minutes. Even some experts say that getting up and moving around every 20 minutes can be much better!
  3. Crossing the legs when sitting may make you feel better during stressful period. But don’t do it too often when you are working in front of the monitor. Crossing legs can be bad for the strength of muscles in your core. It may also contribute to make your pelvic area and low back stiff.
  4. Make sure your office desk and chair are comfortable enough to support the whole of your body when sitting and working.
  5. Use a footrest if necessary to support your feet and make them to be firmly on the floor!

In general; physical therapy or exercise, the use of ice-pack to help cope with the pain and other symptoms, medicines, and even surgical-options in severe cases are the common treatment options for back pain.

The treatment options for back pain are dependent on the severity and the cause behind problem. For instance, if it is triggered by osteoarthritis of the spine, doctor can prescribe anti-inflammatory medicines /pain killers to help improve the symptoms and prevent the disease from worsening!

Citations /references:

  1. http://umm.edu/programs/spine/health/guides/anatomy-and-function
  2. http://www.arthritistoday.org/about-arthritis/types-of-arthritis/osteoarthritis/what-you-need-to-know/oa-and-back-pain.php
  3. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/backpain.html
  4. http://www.nhs.uk/Tools/Pages/Back-pain-guide.aspxs

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