Why is chronic back pain so common?

The statistics are shocking:

• 70 to 85% of the population will experience low back pain at some point during their lifetimes.
• 25% of U.S. adults reported having low back pain lasting at least one whole day within the past 3 months, and almost 8% reported at least one episode of severe acute low back pain within a one-year period.
• Low back pain is the 5th most common reason for all physician visits in the United States.

The only "good" news may be that most cases of back pain are mechanical, meaning they are not caused by serious health conditions such as infection, fracture or cancer.

Why is chronic back pain so common? Well the average adult carries 2/3rds of his or her body weight above the waist. This weight bias makes us susceptible to low back pain when performing activities such as bending forward and twisting while lifting. And adult back pain can start with common childhood trips and tumbles. A small sprain can lead to abnormal spinal joint function. Muscles then begin to compensate, but at the cost of decreased and strained movements. Eventually, even a simple event such as a sneeze or bending over to pick up a dropped pencil can cause a person to "throw their back out." Once a person has an episode of back pain, repeat occurrences are almost guaranteed due to a spinal joint environment of poor adaptation, instability and dysfunction.

These chronic, recurrent episodes are not only costly to the individual, but cost billions of dollars annually to employers and their insurance companies in lost production and health care costs. While medication may relieve the immediate pain, it's not a long-term solution because of potential damage to the liver and kidneys and the high risk of addiction. And chemicals only treat the symptoms, not the source of the problem.

Chiropractic care deals with the mechanical joint issues that cause pain in the first place. Many satisfied patients successfully get rid of their chronic back pain, enjoy the sports and hobbies they may have surrendered because of back pain, and return to a high quality of life.

Photo:  TheeErin via Compfight

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