A groundbreaking study from the University of Turku in Finland reveals that reducing daily sitting by just 40 minutes can significantly prevent the worsening of back pain. This research strengthens the link between physical activity and back health, providing valuable insights for those seeking to improve their posture and wellbeing. Back pain is a common affliction, and this study offers a simple yet effective solution to tackle the issue.
How Sitting & Back Pain Are Linked
In a study published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, researchers at the Turku PET Centre and UKK Institute in Finland found that people who experienced worsening low back pain during sitting or lying down significantly reduced sitting time by over two hours per list (from UIL to T1) and by nearly 20 min/day on average. They consisted of overweight or obese adults who were sedentary for at least 6 hours during the day.
In those participants who underwent the intervention, sitting time was reduced by 40 minutes per day on average over a six-month follow-up period. And amazing results, the compliance is going down so very little low back pain defensively.
“Our subjects were completely average middle-aged adults who had become overweight, exercised very little and sat too much,” says Doctoral Researcher and Physiotherapist Jooa Norha from the University of Turku. “Back pain was also associated with poor health factors, but the cardiovascular risk factors posed the greatest and most consistent threat to lifetime prevalence of high-to-extreme intensity back pain.
Understanding the Mechanisms
The researchers dug deeper into the possible versions of how they prevented back pain. Surprisingly, no close links were seen between the alterations in fat and glucose metabolism of the back muscles and the reduction in low back pain.
Unfortunately, for most of these individuals, the primary causes are those listed by Norha: “Individuals with back pain have greater amount of fat (adiposity) within the back muscles” and glucose metabolism/inulin sensitivity is an explanation to that “can predispose to pain.” “Still, if the muscle itself just remains in a different format but doesn’t change its function or metabolism at all, it can prevent or help get rid of back pain.”
These findings indicate that any beneficial effects of sitting reduction on back health may not strictly occur as a result of physical adaptations in the muscles. The researchers now conclude that the switching of postures and increasing activity levels also function to provide relief from back pain.
Practical Takeaways
The results of the study provide useful knowledge to anyone who wants a stronger, healthier back. People with a history of back pain or heavy sitting, and worries about their spinal health could include strategies to decrease workplace or recreational sitting “If you have a predisposition for back pain or you do too much sitting and are worried about your spine,” Norha suggests.
Yet while that brute act of standing up, can be a part of the solution…. Norha notes, “It is preferable to do some form of physical activity like walking or even a more vigorous type of exercise than just getting up.” The researchers stress the importance of moving between postures and not striving for one best posture.
For those with back pain this study offered a pretty neat, clean and efficient strategy. You can prevent your minor back pain from turning into bigger problem and get healthier overall by sitting 40 fewer mins a day.
