“Sitting. It’s the new smoking.” You have surely
heard this claim. Hollstrom & Associates Inc sees the effects of sitting in our
Largo chiropractic practice in the form of back pain, neck pain
and associated issues. Let us consider
sitting and being sedentary workers and what our options might be.
SITTING COMPARISON TO SMOKING
Is the sitting and smoking a little glaring?
Maybe. One medical report stated that 300 news articles cite this claim! (1) Glaring or not, it does highlight
the issue that
sitting a lot is not healthy for anyone. 25% of adults Largo
chiropractic patients and adults included sit more than 8 hours daily.
Older adults are said to sit for even more time.
(2) Hollstrom & Associates Inc knows we all sit. We are not
shaming you! We’re with you!
THE STATE OF NSCLBP in SEDENTARY WORKERS
Sitting is what we do. Researchers report to us
that the activity level of low back pain suffers is low. Of 300 patients, 32.5% live sedentary
lives, 48.5% live underactive lifestyles, and 68.3% of them did
not do any activity to boost muscle strength
or flexibility. (3) Continued sitting presented a risk for
all-cause mortality separate from physical
activity even if it’s of moderate to vigorous effort. The best
suggestion is to reduce sitting time
not just increase physical activity levels. (4) Hollstrom & Associates Inc encourages
both, too!
WHAT CAN WE DO? EXERCISE (AND A BONUS: RESPIRATION
IMPROVEMENT)
One author opined the challenge
of the “exercise to buffer sitting’s effect” suggestion as an
“inconvenient truth”: a few weekly visits to the fitness center
can’t really wipe away a lifetime of sitting. He
also contended that fixing the sitting issue by standing has its
own problems (beyond its being uncomfortable!) like varicose
veins and foot pain. (5) So what then, especially
for low back pain sufferers? Dynamic strengthening exercises – those that concentrate
on core and global stabilization as well as endurance in stabilizing
musculature – displayed better improvement in pain relief and better
function especially in the lumbar multifidus and transversus
abdominus which are two muscles that low back pain bothers.
(6) More specifically, a 20-week lumbar stabilization exercise
and muscle strengthening exercise program reduced low back pain
and functional disability in sedentary workers. A lumbar stabilization exercise
program proved more effective and lasted
for 12 weeks. (7) An advantage to lumbar segmental stabilization
exercise is that it activated the deep muscles and boosted
respiratory function and pressure in chronic low back pain patient who experienced
segmental instability. (8) Respiration is important! Another study
showed that forced breathing exercise therapy effectively improved
trunk stability and daily living activities in chronic low back pain patients, especially
for those with chronic lumbago in whom these exercises decreased
pain. (9) Exercise helps! It’s not
everything for us sedentary folks, but exercise is a part of the solution.
CONTACT Hollstrom & Associates Inc
Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. Shawn Nelson on The Back Doctors Podcast about The
Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management’s role in back pain
management to help a runner re-gain his stride despite his facet syndrome back
pain condition that irritates us sitting folks.
Schedule you Largo chiropractic appointment
with Hollstrom & Associates Inc today. If “sitting is the new smoking” issue defines
you and back pain makes matters worse, Largo
chiropractic care is for you…together with trying not to sit so much and exercising a little
more!