On the last blog post, we looked at an article/interview on the Fox News website about “A New Way Of Looking At Back Pain“. Fox News interviewed Dr. Patrick Roth, a neurosurgeon, and the author of the book The End Of Back Pain. As I mentioned previously, it was such a refreshing view of how to treat back pain, considering all the negative press we’ve seen and heard of the effects prescription pain killers, and the increasing incidents of fatalities due to the overdose of such drugs. Dr. Roth stated that when you experience back pain, “the best thing you can do is get moving and don’t be afraid to exercise”. The authority site Spine-Health also supports Dr. Roth’s premise that exercise is good for back pain, however, it takes it one step further and cautions us that the exercises must target your specific condition and pain level. Here’s the article from Spine-Health …
Exercise And Back Pain
A typical response to experiencing back pain is to take it easy – either staying in bed or at least stopping any activity that is at all strenuous. While this approach is understandable and may even be recommended in the short term, when done for more than a day or two it can actually undermine healing. Instead, active forms of back exercises are almost always necessary to rehabilitate the spine and help alleviate back pain.
When done in a controlled, gradual, and progressive manner, active back exercises distribute nutrients into the disc space and soft tissues in the back to keep the discs, muscles, ligaments, and joints healthy. Consequently, a regular routine of lower back exercises helps patients avoid stiffness and weakness, minimize recurrences of lower back pain, and reduce the severity and duration of possible future episodes of low back pain.”
There seems to be a consensus that exercise is a good treatment for back pain. However, you cannot just do them haphazardly. It is critical to first determine the exercises that will target your specific condition. And that will entail getting a physical assessment by the appropriate medical professional, which should help identify the cause of your back pain, such as muscle imbalances and/or bad posture.
