July 20th, 2010 
Author Much of the world’s population suffers from lower back pain. The Mayo Clinic estimates that about 80% of Americans will have lower back pain at some point in their lives. Our lower backs carry most of the load of our bodies and of the tasks we perform. On top of this load compression, the lower back is extremely mobile, allowing us to rotate and bend forward and backward. The combination of mobility and load-bearing makes this area of the spine susceptible to injury and wear.
Lower back pain is not strictly an American phenomenon. At TheStar.com we see that back pain is the second leading cause of people missing work for an extended period of time in the UK. Panadol’s global research also found that 35% of people in the UK had suffered lower back pain in the last three months.
Back pain is a widespread phenomenon that has real effects on people’s lives. It is important to understand the possible causes and treatments.
Muscle Imbalances
Muscle imbalance, or the condition of one set of muscles being more developed than the group it is supposed to work with, can cause back pain in many different ways. The more developed muscle becomes chronically tense and tight, which shortens the muscle. This exerts a pull on the tendons, ligaments, muscles and bones around it. The result is postural distortion.
The many muscles of the back and core are susceptible to muscle imbalances. One way in which this condition arises is actually the result of the body’s attempt to relieve pain caused by something else. If a part of the back hurts, your body will automatically adjust your posture to alleviate pressure off of that area.
Consider osteoarthritis as an example. This condition is caused by the wearing down of cartilage in the facet joints of the spine. Since these joints link vertebrae together, their breakdown creates a substantial amount of stiffness and pain in the mobile spine. The body will naturally adjust posture to take pressure off of the damaged facet joint. While this adjustment alleviates immediate pain from osteoarthritis, it actually creates another separate problem by distorting posture,often in a way that leaves the shoulders hunched. This unnatural position strains the spine and the muscles around it and compresses spinal discs in an uneven way. By attempting to avoid back pain, the body’s response may create more of it.
Another common instance of muscle imbalance is found in the core group. This consists of muscles in the stomach, hips, pelvis and lower back. The latissimus dorsi and erector spinae in the back, the layers of abdominal muscles in the stomach, hip flexors and gluteus muscles in the buttocks comrpise the core.
The body’s core is responsible for supporting the spine and stabilizing the whole upper body. Often, people do not know that it is important to have all of these muscles at the same level of development. Overdeveloped abs will tilt the pelvis under and distort posture, just as underdeveloped abs will create tension in the lower back and distort posture. It is important for these muscles to work together. Daily activities, from sitting to lifting objects, should all engage the core group for assistance.
Muscle Weakness
Just as an imbalanced core can wreak havoc on the back, so can an unconditioned core. A weak core does not provide a stabilizing base for the spine. It also fails to hold it up in alignment. It leaves the other muscles of the body without assistance in performing physical feats, thereby causing tension and strain in other areas.
Developing a strong core is one of the best ways to avoid back pain. Check out the MayoClinic’s slideshow of core workouts at Mayoclinic.com.
Tension
Lower back pain can also be the result of muscle tension. The pain can go far beyond that of the tense muscle itself. When muscles become tight or inflamed, they may have an effect on surrounding nerves. The piriformis muscle, for example, is situated in the pelvis and has a tendon that crosses over the sciatic nerve deep within the buttock. If the muscle and tendon become tense, then the sciatic nerve can be compressed.
The sciatic nerve is the largest nerve in the body and supplies motor and sensory capacity to the lower body. It begins in the lower back and runs to the foot on each side. Impingement of the nerve can result in severe sharp pain in the lower back along with weakness, pain and tingling down the leg due to loss of nerve function.
Stretching tense muscles is the best way to avoid back pain caused by them. This is why rigorous physical activity should be followed by stretching. Lactic acid builds up in and around muscles during activity. Stretching helps to keep the blood flowing to these areas, flushing out the built-up toxins and alleviating tension.
Obesity
A fourth common cause of back pain is being overweight. This gives your spine, especially the lumbar region, more load to carry than it is designed for. Dr. Judah G. Burns, diagnostic technician of neuroradiology at The Children’s Hospital at Montefiore in New York City, conducted a study of spinal MRIs of 188 people aged 12-20 who complained of back pain. 68.5% of the children who were overweight had abnormalities in their lower spines, compared with 34.6% of those who had normal or low body mass indexes.
The study shows that being overweight can cause back problems in young people that would not normal affect a person until middle age. The discs that support vertebrae wear at an accelerated rate when the body carries extra weight. For a full summary of the study, see http://www.emaxhealth.com/1275/50/34655/overweight-children-develop-back-problems-adults.html.
Muscle imbalances, tension, weakness and obesity are contributing factors of back pain. Overall physical fitness is the best preventative measure. Work to maintain a healthy weight and condition your muscles, especially the core group, in a balanced and healthy way.
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