Banish back pain through osteopathy

A staggering 80% of western adults will experience back pain at some point in their lives. In many cases, the spine has become weak through slouching, over-exertion or injury. Here, the British Osteopathic Association shares advice on looking after one of the most important parts of your body.

The most common cause of back pain is poor posture, often brought on due to working patters, slouching over the computer, time spent in the car or even a poor mattress. Both over exercising and lack of exercise can also be responsible for back pain.

Often, people start to take special notice of their spine when they suffer pain from a specific incident, but in fact the incident is often not the cause of the pain. Rather, it's an indicator that something is wrong.

However, in certain cases back problems can be a direct effect of an accident or injury. This is illustrated by the story of a fit yoga teacher who enjoys an active sports life (including rock climbing) but went to see an osteopath after chronic saco-iliac problems.

Osteopath Gillian Brown recalls: 'This problem had lasted for more than a year since she fell from a climbing wall. She presented with a ‘dead leg' on the left side and shooting pains in her lower back and anterior left leg.

'Diagnosed with left anterior sacro-iliac joint dysfunction and following a number of treatments all her symptoms subsided and she was able to climb again. Her injury recovery is now maintained with periodic treatments and a saco-iliac belt for support when climbing'.

When first visiting an osteopath after an initial consultation and diagnosis, the practitioner will use gentle stretching and mobilising techniques as well as manipulating joints, to work with the body to create the perfect conditions to facilitate the healing process.

Treatment usually consists of a combination of soft-tissue releasing techniques, and some specific adjustments affecting joints, muscles, tendons and ligaments.

Advice can also be given on self-help treatments. Many patients decide that they would like to have periodic preventative treatments to avoid recurring problems. Yoga can be key to preventing back problems as it strengthens the body's deep muscles supporting the spine, and improves core strength.

Here are some other top healthy back tips for active people:

• Know when to rest and always warm up and warm down before and after exercising.

• Include plenty of GENTLE twists in your yoga practice - this action works the spinal disks and abdominal organs, bringing circulation to the area. Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svasana) gives a lovely stretch to the whole spine.

• Mild back bends such as are highly effective back strengthening postures. Don't be afraid to modify the asanas, and watch out for any sharp pain (in which case, come out). Stay away from strong back-bending asanas such as the Bow (Dhanurasana).

• Look at your lifestyle outside of exercising; make sure you're doing an appropriate workout that balances the body and strengthens the muscles supporting the spine. Take regular breaks from the computer to stretch and walk around.

• One recommended exercise to help keep your discs at bay is to ‘squat', ideally everyday, as people often to in India and the developing world. Squat with flat feet - this stretches the spinal cord and keeps the spinal canal more open.

There are nearly 4,000 osteopaths on the UK register, with over 3,000 of these affiliated to the British Osteopathic Association, who carried out over seven million treatments last year. The British Osteopathic Association and its members are working towards raising the awareness of osteopathy.