Eight out of ten French people suffer from back problems, which makes it the leading cause of disability among those under 45. If back pain has long been assimilated to the ailments of old age, nowadays it affects the entire population. A worrying issue that deserves to be taken seriously and anticipated.

What is chronicity?

In 90% of cases, the back pain more commonly known as “common low back pain” heals in less than 4 to 6 weeks. But it can happen that this continues. If the pain exceeds 12 weeks, the back pain becomes “chronic”. It risks altering the quality of life of those who suffer from it and promoting their social disinsertion. This then requires complex management. It is a real public health issue.

The best way to avoid this transition to chronicity is to act upstream, from the acute phase, by identifying the psychological and socio-professional factors associated with an increased risk of transitioning to chronicity.

An evil that affects increasingly young subjects

If for many years back pain was the result of tiring manual labor, today it appears in new forms and emerges with our new way of life. Sedentary work, transport, use of tablets and smartphones over long hours but also overweight are increasingly singled out as triggers of back pain caused by muscle contractions … If for some, the pain remains occasional, for others, it can have a dramatic impact on daily life, ranging from a few days of immobilization to long-term sick leave.

• A connection not without effects

In our increasingly connected society, many of us consult our smartphones or work on a laptop. Without necessarily realizing it, we are leaning more and more forward. Harmless at first, it is the repetition of the movement that will end up triggering back pain. The reason ? The imbalance of our neck and its lack of alignment to our spine. This bad posture will overwork the top of our spine and trigger what is called neck pain. If it is not treated from these premises, it risks impacting the entire spine and causing pain which in the long term will become chronic.

• Physical inactivity

Teleworking, remote connection and other systems that make our daily lives easier lead us to be less mobile than our ancestors. This lack of physical activity affects our muscle vitality. Less dynamic, our back muscles, which have the role of supporting our back and promoting our stability, soften, our back is then less well supported to the point of developing back pain.

• An increase in overweight

The excess weight weakens the spine because it exerts a stronger pressure on it which can in particular compress the intervertebral discs. In particular, a study reveals that a body mass index greater than 25 increases the risk of low back pain and degeneration of the intervertebral disc. Overweight also affects young individuals, back pain affects them more and more.

A serious threat that requires a review of our lifestyle

It will be understood that back pain is not inevitable, provided it is taken seriously. Whether you are young or older, it can appear in different forms ranging from a simple transient crisis to chronic pain that is much more restrictive. Muscle contractions exerted on our back are not only painful but can set in over time. Back pain, which had been temporary, could then become chronic and require appropriate treatment to manage this pain and prevent it via a muscle relaxant, for example.

To protect yourself from it, it is necessary to realize that the back is the nerve center of our system, our spine being the pillar of our skeleton. Our balance and mobility depend on it. Taking care of it means preserving our well-being, adopting the right reflexes from an early age is by far the best recipe.

Here are 3 simple and accessible tips for taking care of your back: 

• Correcting your posture throughout the day: stretching, adapting your workstation, standing straight are all small reflexes that will have a positive impact on your back.
• Practice a sports activity: playing sports regularly is extremely beneficial. Physical activity helps eliminate bad toxins, maintain muscle mass and at the same time promote good blood circulation.
• Eat healthy: to avoid having “full your back”, maintaining a healthy weight is essential for the right balance. Each extra kilo has an impact on the back and by extension the knees. It is therefore important not to over-solicit them.

The PasseportSante.net team