Pflugerville Wellness Center Shares Tips for Lifting Safely to Prevent Back Pain

Have you heard how lifting can be hard on a low back? If you are a Pflugerville chiropractic patient with low back pain, you have! You’ve likely even experienced it personally. Pflugerville Wellness Center explains proper lifting techniques with our back pain patients in the beginning of treatment. It’s important to keep the spine protected while it heals! New studies report that back supports and even hand support techniques while lifting can help.

MECHANICAL LOADING DURING LIFTING

Mechanical loading is a key risk factor for low back pain. The loading may be due to lifting a heavy or light object that triggers Pflugerville back pain. Much of how the pain comes on is due to how the back muscles act during the lift. Newly designed “exoskeletons” are being explored. They go beyond a back brace but demonstrate some promise in decreasing lumbar flexion and lowering the compressive force on the back by 13-21% while bending. Peak compressive force during lifting was decreased by 14%. The researchers are optimistic that such devices could reduce the risk of compression-related tissue failure while lifting. (1) For now, Pflugerville Wellness Center focuses on what is available widely today to help our Pflugerville back pain patients control their back pain once the pain is diminished by controlling their spine-related motions.

CHIROPRACTIC LIFTING TIPS

It would seem that there would be a big difference in spine action between picking up a pencil and lifting a crate, but there isn’t much difference when discussing how the low back responds while lifting. Interesting! Researchers wanted to see if the common way most people pick things up off the floor – with a hand on a thigh for support – made a difference. They proposed that it would lead to decreased load on the back. The volunteers lifted two kinds of things - a pencil and a crate - off the floor with researchers recording every move and muscle response. Getting the pencil with a hand on a thigh for support while bending over decreased the average peak total stresses by 17 to 25% (depending on the lifting method). Hand support while lifting the crate reduced the peak total stresses by 13-19% for one-handed lifting and 14-26% for two-handed lifting. (2) Hand support while lifting may protect the low back. Pflugerville Wellness Center has some other ways to limit spinal stress during lifting to control Pflugerville back pain and its reappearance: support belts to exercise to spinal manipulation to back school. It’s a comprehensive treatment plan you’ll want to embrace!

CONTACT Pflugerville Wellness Center

Listen to the PODCAST with Dr. Matthew Alexander on the Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he explains the effective, gentle treatment with the Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management for his patient with spinal stenosis and low back pain.                                       

Schedule your next Pflugerville chiropractic appointment with Pflugerville Wellness Center. Lifting can put stress on the the low back. Chiropractic care eases the stress on the low back for back pain relief.  Call us today!