by Vladimire Herard
Regular physical exercise, a proper diet, sufficient sleep, healthy weight loss, ice packs, heat rubs and a variety of pain relievers form a combination of solutions to chronic back pain.
Taken together, changes in your lifestyle and the use of the over-the-counter and skin pain relievers succeed in ridding your back of pain and stiffness.
Such discovery has not taken place overnight. It took decades of medical, nutritional, physical therapy, massage therapy and occupational therapy research to develop these different solutions and integrate them to solve a very common human health problem.
Back pain afflicts nearly 30 percent of adults globally with conditions such as injuries stemming from repetitive motion, nerve pain, obesity, overuse and pregnancy and illnesses such as arthritis, cancer, fibromyalgia, kidney disease and osteoporosis, being among the most common causes.
Based on these causes, back pain sufferers may consider making lifestyle changes or adjustments for relief.
Answers to back pain are wide-ranging. They include engaging in physical exercise; consuming a diet that avoids inflammation and is rich in calcium and vitamin D, which most support bone health and; obtaining sound sleep of at least six to eight hours per night.
Patients can also keep a healthy weight to avoid straining the back; avoid cigarette smoke; use heat or ice therapy, or; try acupuncture, chiropractics, massage, occupational and physical therapy, meditation and yoga.
Aside from lifestyle choices, patients may also turn to the most commonly used pain relievers.
For instance, acetaminophen, aspirin or Tylenol, an over-the-counter pain reliever, can be taken with NSAIDS and keep patients from using potentially dangerous prescription opioid medications such as codeine, fentanyl, hydrocodone or oxycodone for severe back pain or even surgery.
However, it can lead to side effects such as anemia, liver dysfunction and skin rashes.
While it may appear odd, antidepressants can also relieve patients of back pain, especially in the form of duloxetine or Cymbalta and other neuropathic drugs like gabapentin.
Cortisone injections, in the form of steroid injection shots, may also be used if oral pain relievers such as acetaminophen, aspirin, Tylenol or anti-depressants do not work. These contain methylprednisolone and may be applied directly to the nerves.
Muscle relaxants such as diazepam provide relief for muscle tension. They enable back muscles to relax, eradicate pain and and provide for improved mobility of limbs. However, they can lead to drowsiness and, if taken for too long, drug dependence.
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs such as ibuprofen in the form of Advil or Motrin or naproxen, also known as Aleve, can assist with arthritis but can cause side effects like stomach ulcers or kidney failure if overused.
Lastly, patients can also use creams, lotions or topical rubs such as capsaicin or lidocaine to relieve pain by applying to the skin of their muscles more than once a day throughout the week.
