What You Need to Know about Back Pain

If you have back pain, you are not alone. More than 26 million people ages 20 to 64 in the United States experience frequent back pain. Back pain can be debilitating. In fact, back pain is the leading cause of disability in people younger than 45. There are many conditions and causes of back pain. Fortunately, treatment can help alleviate back pain and get you moving again.

About Back Pain

Back pain can affect your upper back and neck, the middle of your back, or your lower back. Injuries and medical conditions can affect the various parts of your back in ways that result in pain. Pulled muscles can cause pain, for example, as can pinched nerves. Torn and pulled muscles or ligaments are common causes of back pain.

Misaligned bones in your back can cause back pain too. Your spinal cord runs through the middle of your spinal column. Nerves exit little holes in your vertebrae; they deliver messages back and forth from your brain to the rest of your body. Misaligned vertebrae can pinch these nerves, which causes the nerve to send a pain signal to your brain.

Rubbery discs between the vertebrae prevent the bones from grinding against one another as you move. Age and wear can cause the outside of these discs to dry out and crack, allowing the gooey interior of the disc to bulge outward or even leak. Bulging of the discs can press against nerves to cause back pain. Muscle spasms can also cause back pain. A muscle spasm is a sustained cramping or tightening of the fibers of the muscle tissue. 

Causes and Treatment of Back Pain

Poor posture is a common cause of back pain. Poor posture means that you are sitting or standing in an unnatural position, and this puts extra stress on the joints, muscles and vertebrae in your back.

Certain careers can cause back pain. Jobs that require you sit at a desk all day can cause back pain; lifting heavy objects can also cause back pain. Sitting on the couch too much can cause weak core muscles, which cause back pain, and exercising too much can hurt your back too. Back pain may be the result of medical conditions, such as a herniated disc or other disc problems, arthritis, deformity, compression fracture or trauma.

Contact Our Local Chiropractor for Back Pain Relief Today

Chiropractic care can reduce back pain. Chiropractic care may include spinal realignment, corrective exercises, lifestyle advice, disc decompression, acupuncture, and spinal and postural screenings.

If you have back pain, make an appointment with Collins Chiropractic Center, conveniently located at 552 Bessemer Super Hwy in Midfield, AL. Our number is (205) 923-0151.