By Are you aware that back pain is one of the most common reasons why patients are booking appointments with their doctors? Even though chiropractors are able to address a number of conditions they are more popularly known in providing natural relief for back pain. According to statistics, over 31 million people in America suffer from back pain.This article outlines questions to ask when interviewing a chiropractor and provides guidelines for what to expect of chiropractic care.
Do you know that back pain can compromise your performance at work as well other activities of daily living? It’s also one of the most common reasons of absenteeism among workers. An estimated 264 million working days are lost each year due to back pain. In America, half of the working population says they experience back pain each year. Back pain does not just target old people; they can affect all ages and races. Next to skin disorders and joint disorders, back pain is the third most common cause why patients seek treatment.
What Do You Think Is Causing Back Pain?
Your back is a complex network of muscles, ligaments, joints and bones. A sprain in your ligament or a strain in your muscle, an inflammation of your joints or a ruptured disk can all result to back pain. Injuries and accidents can also lead to back pain. Other factors that contribute to back pain include stress, obesity, poor posture and arthritis. There are also several diseases that result to back pain such as blood clots, bone loss, kidney infections and kidney stones.
What Can Help with Back Pain?
Today, more and more patients are interested in spinal manipulation also known as chiropractic practice in addressing back pain concerns. The notoriety of the abuse of opioids has sparked the interest of non-drug treatments like chiropractic therapy. In chiropractic therapy, your chiropractor will carefully and manually manipulate your spin to reduce pain and restore functionality.
How Can You Prevent Back Pain?
We all know prevention is better than cure, which is why it is important that we are able to identify what factors contribute to back pain so we can find ways to avoid them. First of all, obesity can lead to back pain. If you don’t want to fall victim to back pain then you need to strive to maintain a healthy weight through diet and exercise. You can ask your chiropractor on the types of exercises that are safe for your back and joints.
You should also avoid long hours of inactivity. If you work in an office setting set your phone to alarm every 15 minutes so you can stand, stretch or walk around. Before you start with your exercise make sure that you do proper stretching exercises. Practice in maintaining proper posture because bad posture is the number one cause of back pain. As much as possible, wear comfortable shoes.
When you sleep, check the firmness of your mattress. Most people don’t realize that their mattresses are actually what are causing their back pain. We suggest that you choose a mattress that has medium firmness to lessen the curve of your spine. In addition, make sure you follow the proper posture when you are lifting heavy objects. Keep the object as close to your body as possible and life with your knees. Another factor that contributes to back pain is smoking. Smoking tobacco impedes normal blood flow thereby depriving your spinal tissues of nutrients and oxygen.
By avoiding those mentioned above you are taking proactive measures in protecting your spinal health minimizing your chances of experiencing future back pain. Nevertheless, when back pain is the problem you know that the best person to seek is a chiropractor that is if you are looking for a non-drug approach to pain relief.
