5 tips to reduce back pain
A bad back is one of the most common health complaints in modern Britain. In fact, an estimated 2.5 million of us experience back pain, stiffness, and other forms of discomfort on a daily basis. Whether the inflammation is caused by a sudden trauma or from sitting slouched over an office desk for eight hours per day, alleviating the pain is essential.
Here are five top tips to help you say goodbye to the pain and prevent your bad back from restricting your life any longer.
Enjoy Light Exercise
When you are actively suffering from back pain, you probably won’t want to hit the gym. However, prevention is the best form of protection and keeping your back in good health through daily exercise is key. Swimming, walking, cycling are all great options. Meanwhile, core strengthening exercises that target the stomach and/or back muscles will help you prevent muscle strains and injuries.
Yoga and other activities that include stretching and controlled breathing can work wonders too.
Improve your sleeping habits
The benefits of a good night’s sleep are plentiful, not least when the body needs to repair muscles and encourage pain to subside. However, sleeping on your back does put pressure on the spine, which can cause problems when inflammation is present. The average person should sleep for 7-9 hours per night. Putting added pressure on your spine for this amount of time will have an immensely negative impact on your life.
Finding a mattress with a firmness level that matches your needs is vital. Sleeping with a pillow under your knees reduces the pressure too.
Alter your diet
Nutrition influences virtually every aspect of our lives. Increasing your calcium intake and vitamin D intake will promote strong bones to support your back and overall health. Milk, yoghurt, cheese, egg yolks, fatty fish, and green vegetables can help. The average person should aim for 700mg of calcium per day and 10-20mg of vitamin D. Supplements can be taken if your natural diet isn’t sufficient.
Certain foods including hot peppers, berries, salmon, and garlic provide anti-inflammatory properties which can reduce back pain
Maintain a better posture
A bad posture will lead to back pain. Even if the rate of regression is slow, the pain will eventually take a toll. Worse still, it can be very difficult to reverse the damage. Therefore, being mindful of how you hold your posture when standing, walking, or sitting is vital. Keep your feet shoulder-width apart and try to avoid shifting your weight onto one side for too long. Tucking the stomach in when standing is also useful.
You may also find that your shoes are causing bad posture. Check that they are the right size and that the soles are in good health.
Try Biogenic CBD oil
Taking the pressure off of your spine is one thing, but you also need to target the pain. When standard anti-inflammatories have failed, the antioxidant properties of CBD oil may work wonders. CBD may alleviate the pain in a matter of minutes and last for up to five hours. CBD interacts with the endocannabinoid system and may reduce pain perception as a direct result of the application.