Your back is aching, and it’s no wonder! You spend three-quarters of your day either sitting at the office or on a couch watching TV. But you don’t have to just grimace and bear chronic lower back pain. Proper posture, a good office chair and some simple lifestyle changes can bring relief... How much time do you spend sitting? If you’re like most desk jockeys, it’s as much as 40 hours a week at work. So if your office chair just isn’t right, your back health will suffer, leaving you with an achy spine, sore shoulders or stiff neck. “When a chair doesn’t support your spine, your muscles have to work harder, and you’ll feel fatigued at the end of the day,” explains Paul Cooke, M.D., a physiatrist (rehabilitation specialist) at Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City. After a while, the vertebrae in your lower back, known as your lumbar, won’t be able to maintain spinal alignment. That puts more stress on discs and joints, leading to more pain, he says.
Later, when you settle into your couch to watch TV, you may be worsening back pain. That’s because soft cushions offer even less lumbar back support than office chairs do. But your back health doesn’t have to suffer from long hours behind a desk and on spongy sofas. We asked back doctors and physical therapists for tips to finding the best office chair, relieving pain and even preventing varicose veins. Sit RightLumbar back support: The most important function of an office chair is to maintain proper curvature of your lumbar spine, Dr. Cooke says. Go Chair ShoppingIn the market for a new office chair? Luxury office chairs offer good support, says Dr. Cooke. Some also offer woven mesh seats for better air circulation, which helps keep the skin cool, he says. But you don’t have to buy a top-of-the-line chair to get good lumbar back support. Recline: When working at your computer, you probably sit upright. But if you’re reading, talking on the phone or conducting a meeting, you can lean back.
“A slightly reclined position relieves pressure on the spine,” Dr. Cooke says. Adjustable seatback: For upper-back support, the chair should be high and wide enough for your shoulder blades to rest on, Dr. Cooke says. Protecting Your Back at HomeAvoid the sofa. It’s not the best choice for sitting for long periods of time, says Dr. Cooke. “Most sofas don’t offer much lumbar back support, and there’s a tendency to slouch.” Instead, use a recliner or an easy chair with back support.Resist the urge to slump down in your chair during a “Real Housewives” TV marathon. “Have your feet on the ground,” Dr. Cooke says. “And sit far enough back in the chair so your seat makes contact with your thigh muscles.Yep, that La-Z-Boy is actually good for you. There’s less strain on your lumbar discs when you’re in a reclined position, and having your legs slightly elevated can improve blood flow, Dr. Cooke says. Expensive recliners, advertised as “stressless” or “back-friendly,” are fine, he says, but not necessary.
“Any comfortable recliner is good,” he says – just make sure it supplies some lumbar back support. Use pillows as props. Since most easy chairs don’t have lumbar support for your lower back, “use a pillow or lumbar roll to maintain curvature,” Dr. Cooke says.16,000 back shop customers now living The Back Shop designs and manufactures a range of chairsand associated products that eliminate back pain.Please explore our website to learn how back pain happens and how it is eliminated. Back Shop Chairs , Proven. Appointments at Mayo Clinic Mayo Clinic offers appointments in Arizona, Florida and Minnesota and at Mayo Clinic Health System locations. Does inversion therapy relieve back pain? Answers from Edward R. Laskowski, M.D. Inversion therapy doesn't provide lasting relief from back pain, and it's not safe for everyone. Inversion therapy involves hanging upside down, and the head-down position could be risky for anyone with high blood pressure, heart disease or glaucoma.
In theory, inversion therapy takes gravitational pressure off the nerve roots and disks in your spine and increases the space between vertebrae. Inversion therapy is one example of the many ways in which stretching the spine (spinal traction) has been used in an attempt to relieve back pain. Well-designed studies evaluating spinal traction have found the technique ineffective for long-term relief. However, some people find traction temporarily helpful as part of a more comprehensive treatment program for lower back pain caused by spinal disk compression. Your heartbeat slows and your blood pressure increases when you remain inverted for more than a couple of minutes — and the pressure within your eyeballs jumps dramatically. For these reasons, you should not try inversion therapy if you have high blood pressure, heart disease or glaucoma. Edward R. Laskowski, M.D. Acupuncture for back pain?Prolotherapy: Back pain solution? Chou R. Nonpharmacologic therapies for acute and chronic low back pain: A review of the evidence for an American Pain Society/American College of Physicians Clinical Practice Guideline.