What Causes Lower Back Pain – And What Can You Do About It?

Nearly 80% of people have back pain, including lower back pain, at some point or another during their life. Because it's an ailment that almost everyone experiences, you really need to understand what causes lower back pain. It's important to understand how you can keep lower back pain at bay by controlling these factors.

Causes of Lower Back Pain

As we age, we lose a lot of our body’s natural muscle tone and elasticity. We also tend to lose bone strength as we age. Loss of fluid results in the discs in your spine becoming less flexible. This means that they do a less effective job of protecting the vertebrae. Simply growing older can be a cause of lower back pain.

A strain, sprain or spasm in your muscles or ligaments can result in the rupture of a spinal disc. This leads to increased pressure on your spinal cord nerves. Your back will let you know about this through neural signs, more commonly known as pain. What are the causes of these strains, sprains and spasms? Generally these are injuries which are caused by trying to lift heavy weights or overextending muscles.

Ailments such as arthritis or osteoporosis can also lead to lower back pain. There are also causes including viral infections, joint or disc irritation and spinal abnormalities.

Lower back pain can also be caused by various physical conditions. This includes smoking, being overweight, pregnancy, stress, bad posture and being in poor shape. Hip pain and lower back pain sometimes come as a distressing package deal. Another cause of lower back pain can be scar tissue from old injuries - this can also lead to further, more critical injuries.

When to Worry About Lower Back Pain

You should take your lower back pain seriously if it comes along with other symptoms. Watch out for weakness in the muscles, particularly in the legs, loss of bowel or bladder control, fever or coughing. If you experience any of these symptoms along with your lower back pain, see your doctor right away. They may indicate a pinched nerve or other underlying problem. If you are diabetic, lower back pain may indicate neuropathy.

Avoiding Lower Back Pain

By taking good care of your back in daily life, most lower back pain can be avoided. Recurring lower back pain can usually be traced to poor posture. There are ways to change this. Stand straight, remember to lift with your legs rather than with your back, and do exercises to build lower back strength. Be certain that you pay attention to workplace ergonomics while on the job. This will greatly impact your ability to prevent lower back pain.