Understanding Back Pain

When a person is not hydrated properly, they set themselves up for back pain and lingering and persistent pain. At night, when you are
sleeping and you are well hydrated, your vertebral discs (the shock
absorbers and space creators) in your spine will rehydrate and regain
their plump dense natural size. The size of your vertebral discs is
important because they help to keep the individual bones of your spine
(vertebrae) evenly spaced apart. This stops muscles and soft tissue
from being too tight, and nerves from being compressed.

When a person is dehydrated, your vertebral discs don’t rehydrate as well and your vertebrae can be closer together – putting you at a higher
risk for back pain. When vertebral discs compress, you can feel strains
or sprains or sharp nerve pain. When a person is not well hydrated,
the products, supplements, medications and remedies they use will not be
as effective – as the body needs water to properly process and detoxify
these properties for best healing.

Probably the most important thing you can do for back pain is to reach and maintain a healthy weight. Being overweight or obese is probably the
number one risk factor for back problems, a diet that’s high in fat and overloaded with calories will lead to weight gain, which can lead to back pain as well as painful joints.

Muscle strain can happen when the muscles are not strong enough to lift a load in the position the person is in. For example, bending down to pick up a heavy box and twisting on your way up. Muscle strain can also happen when the muscles are tired from overactivity. For example, you have been spring cleaning all day – moving furniture, reaching, bending and lifting in motions you haven’t used for a while. Muscle strain can also happen when the muscles are weak and not used to the activity.

For example, you get stiff and sore on the first day of gardening after winter or shovelling snow after summer. People often feel stiff and sore with a muscle strain. Sometimes the strain can be so bad the muscles have inflammation. Normally, a person will recover from new use or overuse in a day or two.

Sometimes it can take a person a lot longer to recover. Muscle strain can create different types of pain and occur in all back muscles. It can affect the shoulders, hips and feet. Muscle pain can affect neck pain, which can contribute to headaches and back pain. Injury is more likely to happen when muscles are not working at their full strength.

Sprained ligaments can occur in the spine, similar to how they occur in a joint like an ankle. If you are doing a sport with speed, like
water skiing or skateboarding, and you have fallen – your body will
respond by tightening the ligaments to try to protect you. Depending on
how you fall, the speed and force can create a strain on the ligaments.

This can also happen when someone is carrying something in an awkward manner and slips and falls – the weight of what they are carrying
pulling them in a strange motion. Sprained ligaments in the spine can
feel sore to the touch, painful and cause inflammation. The sprain can
affect your alignment, and the pressure you are feeling and influences
the effectiveness of treatment options, therapies or stretches you do.

Strains and sprains are technically structural problems. Dehydration can make structural problems worse. Other structural problems can result from problems with the vertebral discs. Vertebral discs are like jelly doughnuts. They are gel-like in the center and have firmer tissue around the outside. They cushion the space between each vertebra (individual bone of the spine which stacks on one another).

• Bulge – When the gel-like center isn’t well hydrated, the outside isn’t quite firm, or there is a lot of weight on the disc, the space can collapse slightly. The vertebral disc can bulge to the side in any direction, based on the way the vertebrae have moved. This can create muscle spasms and pain.
  
• Herniation – When there is a partial tear or weakness in the outer wall, the gel-like center can push through the outer wall. This often happens in the lower back or the neck and can happen in the upper and mid-back. There is often a sensation of numbness, pain and tingling in the back and running down the leg or arm.
  
• Rupture – Technically, a rupture is a type of disc herniation. This term is used when there is a full tear in the outer wall of the vertebral disc. It can have the same symptoms as a herniated disc and be lingering or persistent.

Arthritis is a condition where an inflammatory condition (-itis) is occurring in the joints (arthr-). Osteoarthritis is inflammation in the bony joints. Rheumatoid arthritis is an auto-immune condition that may require a combination of therapies. Inflammation is “nature’s band-aid” and is called by tissues of the body to help them heal, regenerate and stay protected. When inflammation doesn’t leave after its job is done, or the body can’t get the job done and inflammation stays – it can create problems in the bone, joints and soft tissues.

There can be deterioration of the cartilage, ligaments and small muscles of the back. With time, there can be a narrowing of the spinal column (spinal stenosis). People often experience different types of pain with these issues.

Sometimes the bones in the body have difficulty maintaining their density and their mineral content. As this happens over time, the bones begin to weaken and thin. When the bones begin to lose their mineral content and start to become weak, it is referred to as osteopenia. As this progresses and the bones continue to weaken and get thinner, it is referred to as osteoporosis. In both cases, the bones of the body, including the vertebrae, are more susceptible to fractures.

Compression fractures – when the bones push against one another and get closer to one another – can be very painful. Many nerves travel in and out of the spinal column between the vertebrae, so when the vertebra is compressed, nerves are also often compressed. Manipulation therapy, physical therapy and exercise can help patients with their daily routine, slowing the degenerative aspect of these conditions.

As described earlier, there are both sensory nerves and motor nerves going into and out of the spine at each level of vertebrae. The nerves are our high-speed communication system in the body – some travel in and out of the spine and back to the body, while some travel in and out of the spine and up to the brain, then back to the body.

Back pain can happen because of challenges such as:

• Liver dysfunction
• Kidney stones or problems
• Constipation
• Overloaded stomach
• Bacterial or viral infection (in the spine or organs)
• Cancerous or benign tumours of the spine
• Loss of nerve function or degeneration of the nerves

As described earlier, there are both sensory nerves and motor nerves going into and out of the spine at each level of vertebrae. The nerves are our high-speed communication system in the body – some travel in and out of the spine and back to the body, while some travel in and out of the spine and up to the brain, then back to the body.

Back pain can happen because of challenges such as:

• Liver dysfunction
• Kidney stones or problems
• Constipation
• Overloaded stomach
• Bacterial or viral infection (in the spine or organs)
• Cancerous or benign tumours of the spine
• Loss of nerve function or degeneration of the nerves

Pain is an emotion as well as a physical feeling, according to the American Psychological Association. Back and neck pain, along with muscle tension and headaches, are all warning signs of stress.

A study (the epidemiology of back pain and its relationship with depression, psychosis, anxiety, sleep disturbances, and stress sensitivity) published in General Hospital Psychiatry  looked at data from more than 190,000 people and found that depression was significantly associated with back pain. Managing stress with exercise, healthy eating, getting enough sleep, meditating, and talking with friends and family can help you relieve both stress and back pain.

Shoes

Even a sensible pair of shoes can change your gait and lead to back pain if the soles are worn, so be sure to replace old shoes or swap out your old inserts for new ones. Also shoes without proper arch support can affect your gait, and that can create problems and pain in your back and even your neck.

Smoking

While there are many obvious reasons to quit smoking, here's one more: Cigarettes hurt more than just your heart and lungs - in fact, smoking deprives cells all over your body of oxygen, which can weaken muscles and ultimately lead to back pain. Research published on Wiley has revealed that those who smoke triple their chance of developing back pain.