Most of us suffer from low back pain at some point in our life. At times we may know the reason that triggered it like after lifting a heavy box improperly or just sleeping in an abnormal posture.
But generally speaking low back pain is one of the most common reasons for doctor visits, disability and loss from work.
Read these 5 surprising reasons that might be causing you the back pain and simple tips to fix the problems.
1. You Are Feeling Down: Being upset, feeling down or more serious mood disorders like depression can show up as pain in different parts of the body most commonly affecting the lower back. A research at University of Sydney found that people who had symptoms of depression had 60% greater incidence of back pain compared to those who were not depressed.
Although the link between back pain and depression is not clearly understood , one theory is that people who are depressed or feeling down are less likely to exercise and more likely to have disturbed sleep , both of which can contribute to low back pain.
The Fix: See a therapist, who can help manage your low moods. This in turn, could help your back pain subside. Also at times if you feel low or depressed, instead of lying down try to engage yourself in healthy exercises or just go out for a walk. This will help prevent you from getting a back pain but also will help make your mood better.
2. Decreased Hip Mobility: A life time of sitting steadily decreases hip mobility by thickening the fibrous tissue in the joints. This leads to extra strain on your lower back and associated medical conditions like arthritis can make it more worse. If you lean forward when you sit as most of us do while we are at the computer, it puts extra amount of force on the spine which can cause low back pain.
The Fix: Do healthy stretch exercises and take breaks of standing or walking around the room while sitting for prolonged times.
3. You Are Over Weight: Being overweight is one of the reasons that contributes to back pain. Also the distribution of those extra pounds makes a difference too. Extra weight in your abdomen tilts your pelvis and increases the curve of spine. The spine joints are pushed and are under stress. This leads to back pain.
The Fix: Exercise frequently and losing extra weight by using healthy diet helps get you a good figure as well as avoid the back pain.
4. You Are On The Phone All the Time: Having a strong social network is good but if you are using your phone too much, you can be putting your back at risk. That is because bending your neck to read or text puts extra strain on neck muscles and the spine. Also it can lead to bad posture which can result in back pain.
The Fix: While using your phone to read or text keep your head up and eyes looking down. Good posture is very important. It is one where you bring your ears above your shoulders and open up your chest by retracting your scapula. Also if you need to use your phone for a long time use headphones with a build in microphone so you don't have to bend your neck.
5. You Have Bad Feet: Our body's organs and systems are linked together in a way that a problem in one system can manifest as pain in the other. For instance if you have pain in the heels or the bottom of your feet, it can cause you to walk with a limp that can lead to abnormal gait and back pain. Similarly any medical conditions of feet and legs like arthritis can have associated back pain.
The Fix: Get medical attention for your feet problem and if managed properly you will be relieved from back pain as well.
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