Sedentary lifestyle and low back pain - The link

Amit Singh, age 31-year-old, frequently suffers from low back pain. He works at a BPO. His job requires him to sit all night. He comes back home in the morning and sleeps through the day. Weekends are usually spent lazing around with friends. He is perplexed as to why he gets these back pains, as he really is not exerting himself in any way.

This is a typical scenario among youngsters today, and medical experts say that not exerting too much is precisely the reason for Amit’s and several youngsters’ low back ache!

Sedentary lifestyle is harmful for your health. It gives you obesity, diabetes, and heart diseases. We all know this well! Now, there is increasing evidence to show that a sedentary lifestyle can predispose you to chronic backache!

Backache basically originates in the muscles. When the muscles are inactive and not being used for whatever activities they were meant to be used for, they become redundant. They start becoming stiff and also get shortened, a bit. This can cause severe pain with even the slightest of movements.

Today, with so many of us having high-pressure jobs, we can’t think of moving away from our desk without completing the work assigned. By the time we are done with all the meetings and catching up with deadlines, we return home ‘drained out of our juices,’ too tired to even have a meal. The only cycle our body follows is the office-sleep-office cycle. Physical activity doesn’t feature in our list of priorities at all.

This lack of physical activity affects us negatively. The muscles become stiff and sore. The spinal discs, soft tissues, and ligaments of the spine miss out on the nourishment. Hence, they start degenerating. This only adds up to the back pain.

Added to this are the improper sitting postures. Almost none of us sit erect. Slouching is very common. The chairs, despite comfortable back rests, make us sit in weird postures through the day adding to the agony on our spines.

All back pains cannot be cured. The pain arising due to a sedentary lifestyle and improper postures can definitely be cured. Strengthening exercises for the muscles of the back and abdomen can help provide better support for the spine.

Participating in regular exercise programs that include stretching, strengthening, and low-impact aerobic exercises can help heal your current back troubles and prevent future ones.

Movement and exercise keep the spine healthy, flexible, and strong. Gentle forms of exercise such as the yoga; Pilates; water therapy; riding a bike, stationary or otherwise; or walking, are especially helpful. If you do not have the time to join a gym and exercise properly, you can do simple things like walking or cycling to office and using the stairs instead of the elevators.

Also one needs to sit correctly. Use a high backrest chair that does not have too much of a cushioning. Sit straight and avoid leaning or slouching.

Our health is in our hands. It is up to us to take care of our body. After all it’s only one life we have!