Did you know that backache is the first cause of sick leave in the United States and the second in the Netherlands? And that it is the third cause of medical expenses in Western countries?
As it is: back pain is one of the main evils that haunts us. It is estimated that between 60% and 80% of the population will suffer an episode of lower back pain at some point in their life.
For all these reasons, it is essential to learn what causes back pain and how we can fight it.
The main causes and risk factors
This pain can be caused and aggravated by multiple reasons: the most frequent are injuries (especially sport injuries), bad posture during the day or while sleeping, sudden movements and accumulated stress, which keeps the muscles in tension; in addition to being a symptom on many occasions of other diseases such as scoliosis, endometriosis, etc.
The risk factors that are most involved in back discomfort are: age (usually aggravated around the age of thirty due to past sports injuries, but becomes more common between the ages of 60 and 65); obesity; smoking; manual work; and the genetic factor, which is the most relevant reason.
It is also more common in women than in men and it is aggravated by anxiety and depression, which are also the main factors to make it chronic, that is, that it becomes something constant.
How can I relieve the pain?
To heal back pain and prevent it from appearing on future occasions, it is very important to have a series of good habits in your routine.
The best thing for these pains is usually a stretching routine, both in the morning when getting up and at night before going to sleep. You can start by trying to touch your toes, arching your back forward and backwards, and arching your arms, moving your torso from side to side.
Physical activity is essential to keep your body active, moving and healthy.
You should try to correct your posture whenever you have a rounded back, especially if you spend many hours a day sitting at a desk. Practicing exercises that make you aware of your posture and the state of tension in which your body is never hurts. We have an article dedicated to Mindfulness that can help you in this regard.
Frequent massages (professionals or at home) usually help a lot. Apply relaxing creams or with lavender essence to relax the body and loosen the muscles.
Choose your mattress well
When the pain becomes frequent, the fact of having a mattress of one type or another and of good quality directly influences its improvement.
Viscoelastic mattresses with HR foam guarantee a 100% adaptability to your body, avoiding spinal deviations and offering greater lumbar support. Pocket spring core mattresses with a viscoelastic layer are also effective, but only adapt up to 85% to the body.
Having a good pillow with cervical support is also important, since neck pain often leads to shoulder and back pain.
We recommend choosing even depending on the position you usually have when sleeping, since each of them requires more support at different points of the back.
You know, don't suffer anymore.