Back pain can be an infuriating condition. It can cause discomfort and, if it is extreme, can make you miserable. As per a report, about 80% of adults experience back pain at least once in their lifetime. The back region covers the muscles that support activities like walking, running, sitting, and standing.
A famous paleoanthropologist, Jeremy DeSilva, said that back pain is very frequent in humans because we walk on two legs while our ancestors or mammals sharing our body shape have a horizontal spine.
Back pain can result in pain, numbness, and discomfort. If left untreated, the neural endings might face prolonged irritability. This can lead to serious complications. Back pain can also result in missing some social gatherings and events. It also restricts your daily activities.
We need to understand that the discomfort of back pain is not just affecting the person physically. It also hampers a person psychologically, altering moods and memory. Back pain can affect people from any age group. But older people have increased risks of facing it.
What causes back pain?
To understand what causes back pain, it is crucial that we understand what makes our back. The back of the human body has different bones, muscles, ligaments, disks, and tendons. The trouble with any of these will result in back pain. There exist some cases where the cause of back pain can not be found.
Back pain can be caused by osteoporosis, which is the thinning of bones. Strain or injury of muscles, ligaments, or tendons in the back region can cause back pain. Poor posture while sitting or sleeping too can be considered a cause of back pain. Kidney stones or infections, too, are a possible cause of back pain.
Spinal medical complications like spinal cancer or spinal infection also cause back pain. Infection in the pelvis, bladder, or kidney too should be considered as a cause. People struggling with sleep disorders have increased risks of back pain, according to reports. Pregnancy, old age, a sedentary lifestyle, obesity, medical conditions (like arthritis), an unhealthy way of living, or some genetic factors can increase the chances of back pain. Here are 10 Home Remedies To Give Relief for Back Pain.
1. Hot and Cold treatment for back pain
Heat treatment involves the use of hot water bottles or pads, while cold treatment uses cold temperature to ease back pain. In some cases, both heat and cold treatments can be used alternatively for better results. Heat treatment enhances blood flow, which helps in muscle relaxation.
In contrast, cold treatment decreases blood flow which is beneficial in controlling inflammation. Cold temperatures are efficient in providing a numbing effect which helps in relieving back pain. It should be noted that the use of extreme temperature in heat therapy or putting ice directly in contact with your skin.
2. Massage for back pain
Massages can help combat a lot of lower back problems. Targeting the correct muscles, and back pain can be an easy way to ease back pain. By choosing and targeting the correct muscle, you can control back pain. Massages help in relaxing the body’s muscles and also accelerate the release of endorphins.
Endorphins are neurotransmitters pre-existing in the system, which are known to block pain receptors. You can opt for a massage one time in a gap of 1 to 3 weeks. There are a variety of massages to ease your back pain, from which you can choose as per your preference. Massage should be avoided in specific cases like skin infections, burns, fractures, or deep vein thrombosis.
3. Pain relief creams
Pain relief creams, medically called analgesics, provide soothing and cooling effects for quick relief. Later, when the creams or ointments are absorbed by the skin completely, they are effective in performing anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving actions. These are easily available in pharmaceutical counters or online medicine stores.
A lot of pain-relieving creams have menthol, whose cooling effect can dull the pain temporarily. Menthol application on the skin can desensitize the pain receptors, which proves to be beneficial for quick relief. Using menthol in excess can have side effects like increased pain sensitivity.
4. Poor postures cause back pain
The postures of your body can be a causative agent for lower back pain. Bad postures put strain and pressure on your body parts (shoulder, back, etc.) which might lead to back pain. The key to eliminating bad postures and eventually fighting back pain is to maintain proper posture while you sit, sleep, stand, or walk.
You should avoid repetitive postures like sitting for long periods. Standing incorrectly, too, can cause suffering from back pain. Yoga, walking, running, swimming, aerobics, and exercises can help improve your posture. Pilates (an exercise including six basic principles) and Tai Chi (a Japanese exercise) are being useful as well.
5. Exercise for muscle movement
Back problems can be troublesome, but it is necessary to get your back movement to ease back pain. Exercising can help you regain your strength and muscles and accelerate your healing. The back pain makes it a bit difficult to start an exercise routine. But considering your pain levels, you can start it gradually and improve the conditions.
Initially, you might notice pain in your back region. But the symptoms are supposed to get better with time. Speed, frequency, and rest time should be decided as to the severity of the back pain. If you notice the worsening of back pain after exercising, you are advised to opt for professional help.
6. No movement is a wrong idea
People with back pain prefer resting, and sometimes, they even are advised not to move at all. When you are struggling with back pain, you might not like the idea of even walking. But a sedentary lifestyle will only worsen your back pain.
You can inculcate light movements like brisk walking to keep your body physically active. You should try to keep your body active by doing minimal tasks like performing daily activities. No movement can result in the weakening of muscles of the spine and back.
7. Maintaining a healthy weight
Obesity can have too many adversities. One side effect of weight gain is back pain. Adding to this information, being overweight is a very common condition that causes back pain. Extra weight linked with obesity or rapid weight gain means extra stress.
Rapid weight gain adds strain on joints, muscles, and ligaments that can lead to back pain. Belly fat in excess makes the slanting forward pelvic and lower back area, which, too, causes back pain. If you are struggling with obesity, reducing weight can be extremely beneficial for reducing stress on the spine.
8. Can sleep deprivation affect back pain?
One study conducted in 2015 proved that lack of sleep could affect pain threshold and pain perception. Good sleep consists of sufficient hours, quality, and sleeping posture. The recommended hours of sleep for an adult human is 7 to 9 hours. Along with the duration, the quality of sleep too has an impact.
While we are talking about pain perception here, we should understand that bad sleeping posture can be a cause of back pain. Bad sleeping postures add unwanted strain on specific muscles. Tiredness, heartburn, snoring, or pain can be signs of sleeping in the wrong postures.
9. Diet and back pain
Chronic spinal pain is one of the causes of back pain. A study suggested that people suffering from spinal pain had low whole grains, dairy products, and fruits in their diet. When the back pain is restricted by the cause of spinal pain, sugar intake should be controlled. Diet can be important in fighting back pain if the cause of back pain is obesity.
Unhealthy dietary consumption can lead to unhealthy weight gain that can result in back pain. Inflammation is another considerable cause of back pain. Hence, the consumption of anti-inflammatory foods (like Tuna, Salmon, Beans, and Poultry.)
10. Smoking
The adverse effects of smoking are often attributed to respiratory troubles. But there are several studies that present a link between smoking and back pain. One possible reason for back pain in smokers is the damage to their arteries. The discs and joints contain arteries, whose damage might show symptoms like back pain.
Another reason why back pain from smoking can be explained is that it causes osteoporosis. Osteoporosis causes thinning of the bones, which can lead to back pain. The toxic substances present in cigarettes, too, can be responsible for back pain. This is because they can damage spinal cells and the interior lining of blood vessels.
Wrapping It Up
Back pain can become uncomfortable. If you are suffering from mild back pain, you can consider going for home remedies for pain relief. If your back pain is accompanied by any other symptoms like fever or weight changes, you should get in touch with a doctor. If the pain extends for a longer time or becomes extreme, you should let a professional see it. In case of severe back pain, you are advised to follow an expert’s guide.