Health Articles

Dr. Ron Nusbaum is the Director of Back Clinics of Canada. He has been in practice for 21 years, helping those suffering from severe, chronic back pain and neck pain achieve a pain-free life and regain vitality and strength. Dr. Nusbaum has performed more than 4,000 Spinal Decompression sessions over the last two years, and his patients experience an unprecedented success rate when they follow his program of care.

Back Clinics of Canada serves primarily the Southern Ontario Region, but patients do come from across Canada and the United States, and sometimes from overseas.

The lumbar area is one of the most fragile parts of the human body so it needs to be supported when in potentially stressful positions like sitting or lying down. An unsupported lumbar area can lead to back pains, neck pain, headache and fatigue due to sleeplessness caused by uncomfortable positions. These problems can potentially interfere with daily activities. Lumbar support cushions can help solve these problems.

Lumbar support cushions are a kind of pillow designed especially to support the lower back (lumbar area) and to remove the discomforts of bad posture. The cushions have foam fillings and fabric coverings. The most common fillings used are polyurethane foams and the most common fabric is nylon. Fibers and fabrics made of polyester, acrylic and olefin are also commonly used. These materials can be colored so the cushions can also be used for decorating chairs.

Most lumbar back support cushions are flexible so no matter what position the back shifts to, the cushions will follow. The pain of staying in an erect position is therefore taken away. The cushions are usually small and easy to carry. Many cushions today are ergonomic, fitting almost perfectly to the lumbar.

There are many designs for lumbar support cushions. The designs vary depending on the type of chair they will be used on. Thick lumbar back cushions are for wide-backed chairs while thin cushions are for narrow-backed chairs. Common cushions fit regular chairs like those used in desk jobs, offices, or dining rooms. There are specialized lumbar cushions for car seats. These are usually smaller since they need to fill smaller spaces only.

Inflatable cushions are one of the newest designs. These cushions can be adjusted depending on a person’s preference. They are have soft cotton tops and are washable. They are ideal for traveling by car, plain, ship or any vehicle.

Because you’ll be using these cushions almost anywhere, getting used to them won’t be a problem. You don’t have to constantly adjust to different kinds of orthopedic cushions when you only use one. The comfort brought by lumbar support cushions instantly bring relief from back pain by guiding the person’s back into a comfortable, yet suitable sitting position that frees up the joints and muscles from excess pressure.

Lastly, because the cushions are the simplest orthopedic cushion of them all, it is also relatively more affordable than other cushions. Should you decide to get other cushions in the future, then it is up to you; but if you haven’t tried orthopedic cushions yet, then getting lumbar support cushions may be a good starting point for you.

Anyone who sits at a desk studying or using a computer, has probably had student syndrome. Sitting in any position for a prolonged period of time can cause neck, midback, or lower back pain. Most people however, suffer through and wait for it to disappear, which it eventually will, that is, until the next time. To understand how to treat these aches and pains it is important to understand what is actually happening.

When students sit for prolonged periods they strain muscles, ligaments and joints of their spine. This usually occurs because of the lack of strength in the stabilizing muscles of the spine, combined with bad posture. Most people do not strengthen the proper muscles in their daily workouts, and many students do not exercise at all. The result of this is that spinal joints and ligaments take the majority of the force being put on the spine.

Just as in a sprained ankle, the joints swell up and there is a very active inflammatory process that occurs. The surrounding muscles sense that there is an injury, and they contract to protect the area from any further damage. Now there are two problems, the tight muscles and the strained joints.

If no treatment is done, and the area is left to rest, the pain will eventually go away, but the area is not healed. When inflammation settles it becomes scar tissue. Scar tissue can restrict the motion of joints, as well as reduce the amount of blood flow,oxygen and nutrients to the area. Scar tissue is also much weaker than healthy muscle or ligamentous tissue. So, you can see how important it is to get rid of any scar tissue to allow the body to heal properly.

Treatment goals would be to reduce pain, regain motion and strengthen the stabilizing muscles of your spine. Reducing pain and increasing motion can be accomplished with spinal adjustments. An adjustment releases endorphins which help kill the pain, but it will also help reduce the scar tissue, by regaining the range of motion and natural mobility. This enables the body to heal naturally. When sufficient healing has occurred, exercises are added and proper stretching should be done throughout the entire course of treatment. Eventually, stretching should become a daily habit.

As a chiropractor I have to be realistic. I know that patients are leaving my office to go home and do the same type of things that caused the problem in the first place. Most patients, after a series of treatments, realize that they can use chiropractic care as a tool. In busy times they will come weekly, or every other week to help them get through the tough times. As long as the same stimulus is there, it is hard to cure the problem, but in most cases it is controllable. One last hint: Have an icepack handy, it will help reduce the inflammation and pain.
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I had the pleasure of spending two days at a Dr. Stuart McGill seminar about “Building the Ultimate Back”. Dr. McGill is a spine biomechanist at the University of Waterloo, an internationally renowned speaker about low back dysfunction, an equally renowned clinician, and the author of Low back Disorders and Ultimate Back Fitness and Performance.

This first article provides what I view as the 4 basic points that everyone should know about low back pain:

Avoid repeated flexion: Everyone knows that bulging discs are caused by a single heavy or awkward lift, right? Not true, according to Dr. McGill. Discs can be damaged by a single traumatic event, but this typically results in a complete rupture of the disc, or even an end-plate fracture. Disc bulges on the other hand, typically happen as a result of repeated small movements. Remember the wafer thin mint from Monty Python’s the Meaning of Life? This is why so many people claim to have put their back out from picking up something incredibly light.Why does this happen? Because when our low back bends forward (flexion), the load we are carrying (including our body weight) is completely supported by the structure of the back (the discs and the vertebrae), not by the muscles. Muscles get stronger from repetitions, but discs do not; they get strained. Is there a way to reduce the risk of low back injury and reduce the symptoms of an already injured back? Absolutely: Stop flexing! I wonder how many people have been told that the best way to keep their back healthy is to do crunches or situps? Both are flexion exercises and both are bad for your back. Now, the idea behind it is a good one: strengthening the core. Strengthening your core is a fantastic idea. But find better ways, and do not limit yourself to just the rectus abdominus (”six pack” muscle). Some good core strengthening exercises include bird dogs, planks, side planks, cable chops and glute bridges.

Posture! For people suffering from back pain, it is often difficult to exercise because they get tired or sore very quickly. Sometimes just sitting, standing or walking causes pain. Even though there may be a disc injury present, in most cases the underlying problem is postural.To demonstrate this concept, Dr. McGill asked us to put a hand on the low back an inch or two to the side of the spine either seated or standing (try this at home!). With the hand on the back, adjust your position forward and backward; gently sticking your chin out and back; and try to find the “sweet spot”, or the point at which the back muscle feels relaxed. When you move out of this position, you will feel the muscle activating again. If you do not feel this, try again with your hand on a few different spots on your back. If you sit or stand anywhere but your “sweet spot”, the muscles in your back are constantly working, which means they are getting tired and when they are tired, they get weak. Weak back muscles are not capable of stabilizing your back properly, and so your back is left unprotected and susceptible to injury. In addition to finding the sweet spot when sitting and standing, Dr. McGill teaches walking as if you “own the world”. What does this mean? When you walk, straighten your back, rotate your thumbs out (with elbows relatively straight) and keep rotating until you feel your chest open up (with shoulders pulled back). From this position, swing your arms and walk “like you own the world”.

Avoid back exercises in the morning. Most people who have had low back pain have been told to do knee to chest exercises first thing in the morning. Guess what? Knee to chest exercises in the morning are bad for your back. I attended this conference with a room full of physiotherapists and chiropractors, and they were all surprised to hear this, but once Dr. McGill explained himself, they all seemed to be in agreement. When you bring your knees to your chest, your back rounds slightly. In this rounded (or flexed) position, your discs change shape slightly in response to the position of the vertebrae.While you sleep, your back hydrates so that by the time you wake up your discs are filled with liquid. Think about your discs as water balloons. If they are only half full, you can push on one side of the balloon and the water will just move over to the other side without any trouble and then move back when you let go. But if the balloon is completely full of water, when you push on one side, the balloon will burst. This is essentially what can happen when you flex your spine first thing in the morning. This risk is reduced significantly after about an hour as most of the liquid leaves the discs. So think about avoiding bending in all your activities first thing in the morning. So why does it feel good? That good feeling is a neurological result of the stretch reflex. Am I right that the good feeling lasts for less than 20 minutes and then the pain returns? Try going a few days without this movement and you should see an improvement.

When we sit the ligaments in our back stretch. Because the ligaments are important stabilizers, when they are stretched they leave the spine less stable. It can take up to 30 minutes for the ligaments to return to their normal length, which means for 30 minutes after sitting, your back is at risk. This is particularly important for people who perform heavy labour shortly after sitting at a desk or in a car. To reduce the risk of back injury, it is best to try to plan your day so that you have a bit of time to walk around between sitting and lifting. Think about this the next time you watch an NBA player get off the bench and right into a game and then they have a 7-foot tall opponent leaning on their back to get the rebound. Some teams now realize this hazard and will call players they want to sub a few minutes in advance so that they can walk around a bit and start getting their spinal ligaments back to normal.

Anyone who is active will probably experience acute back pain sometime in their life. This is usually caused from muscle strains or ligament strains.

It is something you may immediately notice. For example if you lift weights your back pain may become severe right while you’re lifting.

If you are not normally an active person and all of a sudden you’re doing strenuous activity you may strain a muscle or strain a ligament. This could get gradually worse over a period of hours to the point that you are now in acute pain.

Acute back pain can be treated however it may be several weeks before you are back to doing the activities you are currently doing.
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Other ways acute back pain are brought on include sports injuries, poor posture, bending forward for too long a period of time, holding a cell phone in your ear while you’re doing other things around the house, carrying something heavy such as a backpack or purse, and accidents.

The old adage that bed rest is best is not really true when dealing with acute back pain. You are better off to go about your normal routine with the exception of what caused back pain to begin with.

You certainly can take it slower and possibly lying down will feel better. Hot baths and cold comfort compresses can help, starting with cold first in an ice pack. Ice several times a day for up to 20 minutes helps slow any inflammation and swelling.

Taking a hot bath can also help relieve the pain and inflamed muscles. Ibuprofen may help the pain go away as well. If you are not better after 72 hours then it is probably time to go see your doctor!

Low back pain is unfortunately one of the most common maladies of modern man. I say modern man because it is doubtful that our primitive ancestors abused their backs in the ways that we do. Modern civilization has taken us out of the healthy exercise mode of wandering and gathering food, of cultivating food and made us into sedentary “couch potatoes”.

The effect that this has had on our lower backs is obvious. Our sitting postures are generally quite unhealthy, slouching and allowing our lower backs to go into flexion puts a strain on the back which will eventually cause discomfort, sometimes mild but sometimes severe. Considering the number of people that spend many hours daily sitting with poor posture (especially for long periods), it is no wonder that lower back pain is so prevalent in our society.
Chronic back pain
Improper lifting is another cause of low back pain. The correct way to lift a heavy object is to place it between your feet, squat down; bending your knees, grasp the object and rise straight up using the powerful muscles of your legs to lift the weight. It is very important to lift straight up and to be careful to avoid any twisting during the lift. Your body just wasn’t made to tolerate this type of force. Awkward lifting situations are a very common cause of low back pain and should definitely be avoided.

Although we can’t avoid sitting, there are some ways we can avoid the resulting low back pain. First of all, try to break up your sitting periods; take a break, drink some water, go to the restroom, or any activity that will allow you to get up from your sitting position, even if only for a few minutes. Better yet do a few stretching exercises.

The very best one I know of is very simple and easy to do; just stand up straight, put both hands on your hips and lean backwards as far as you can, hold that for a couple of seconds, and return to your starting position. You only need to do a few of these several times a day to keep your low back healthy. Here’s to your good health.

Lower back pain exercises

If you have acute back pain due to strain or minor injury, then limited rest for 24 to 72 hours can help. Too much inactivity can worsen such problems, though. So it is a good idea to get moving as soon as you feel comfortable, and not to let your fear of pain keep you immobilized. Start with gentle, small movements and work from there.

Any exercises that move you into comfortable positions tend to be the best for treating back problems. So avoid activities and positions that could cause or increase back pain. Comfortable exercise and gentle activity are the best combination to stay flexible, build strength, and reduce back pain symptoms.

Lower back pain exercises include three basic types:
(1) strengthening exercises that focus on the back, legs, and stomach, to increase spinal support;
(2) stretches that increase your muscle and tissue flexibility, which makes them less prone to injury; and
(3) aerobic exercises, to strengthen the back and other muscles, along with the heart.
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First, here are two lower back pain exercises that can help you stretch and strengthen. The great thing about these two is that you can do them nearly anywhere. As you do each exercise, pay attention to proper form and don’t move any faster than you feel is safe.

1. An easy back stretch:

A lot of back pain comes from doing desk work. Every hour or so, stand up, spread your feet apart slightly, place your fingertips into the hollow of the lower back, and slowly stretch back so that your shoulders and face move toward the ceiling. Keeping your balance, reach a comfortable position, and go no further. Hold this position for five to ten seconds. You may want to inhale and exhale “into the lower back” once or twice to help relieve tension and increase your depth of relaxation. Then repeat several times. The reason this works is that it moves the body into a position that is contrary to the sitting at the desk position, so it’s great for breaking up tension. Try it!

2. An easy back strengthener:

Lie on the floor, facing the ceiling. Relax your back against the floor. Bend your knees and place your feet flat against the floor. Slowly raise your head and shoulders. Keep your eyes fixed on the ceiling. Count to two, holding this position. Slowly bring your head and shoulders to the floor again. Do this sequence a total of twenty times.

3. Aerobic exercises:

Easy aerobic exercises include walking, bicycling, swimming, and wading in waist-deep water. These activities increase the level of oxygen in your body, which helps to keep back muscles healthy.

For most, walking is the easiest and most accessible form of exercise to decrease lower back stress. Walking is far less stressful than standing still, because as you shift the weight from leg to leg, you are giving the other leg “half time off.” This constant and alternating release of weight supports improved back health. So take a walk three days a week for at least twenty minutes. It’s a great antidote to sitting at the desk or standing on your feet!

While lower back pain can be caused by a multitude of things, some of them very serious, the overwhelming majority of lower back pains are caused by muscular strains and spasms. Many times, the injury occurs first thing in the morning when you get out of bed and begin your daily activities before your muscles are properly stretched out. Injury then, can happen from otherwise innocent maneuvers such as bending over to tie your shoelaces or toweling off after a shower, or even turning to wipe your backside after toileting. You can cause you back additional strain by poor posture, poor body positioning and mechanics when bending or lifting, and lack of exercise. Other causes of lower back pain include: urinary tract infections, a slipped or herniated disc, stress, fever, arthritis and kidney stones, to name a few. Once you have determined that you are suffering from a simple “pulled muscle” in your back, you can follow the recommended therapy below to help you get better, fast!

Treatment and Expectations:
The most important thing to maintain in treatment of simple lower back pains, is to maintain the natural curvature of the lower back. This can be achieved with a little back support to the lumbar area as shown in the accompanying diagram. Generally, there are three rules to follow:

—  Total bed rest until your back is completely healed. Hard for some of us to do, but your back will suffer longer if you don’t!
—  Lay in any position of comfort: If you lay on your back, a pillow or sofa cushion under your knees. If you lay on your side, a pillow between your knees.
— DO NOT do stretches or stretch your back out, no matter how good it feels!!! You always will cause a worse injury.

Take some Advil or Motrin for it’s anti-inflammatory and pain killing effects round the clock as labeled. Apply Ice for 10 minutes on, five minutes off for the first few hours, then use a Heating Pad, for up to two days after the pain has completely resolved. Above all, rest. In a few days, after your back gets better, you definitely want to avoid twisting, stooping, bending, lifting and any other activity that will aggravate your lower back muscles. You want to conduct yourself as if you have a long board tied to your back so as to immobilize your spine.

To avoid a repeat of this painful episode, begin a stretching and exercise program that will strengthen your back and abdominal muscles (to help support your spine) and be sure to stretch lightly when you get out of bed. Also, be sure to always use the proper technique when lifting and bending.

Seek a Medical Professional if:

— The pain last longer than one week and is worsening, or has no improvement.
— You lose control of your urine or stool.
— Have blood in your urine
— You feel any numbness or tingling to legs or feet.
— You begin to have paralysis or unusual weakness of any body part.
— When in doubt.

If you are one of the millions of people that suffer from lower back pain, then you need to know that exercise can do wonders for you. When it comes to relieving lower back pain, exercise provides more long term relief than any back pills that your doctor can give you. The fact is, pills only serve to mask the problem by providing temporary relief of the pain, but the problem that is causing much of the pain is still there. Exercise will strengthen the muscles that support your back and improve flexibility thus greatly reducing the chances of future attacks.
Causes of low back pain
You should be doing a three fold program of exercise which includes aerobics, resistance and stretching exercises. Aerobic exercise like walking and bike riding will begin to get your body conditioned properly because it strengthens your heart and lightly works your muscles. Resistance exercise like weight lifting will strengthen the muscles that support your back. Stretching exercises will increase flexibility giving your back a greater range of motion. Your doctor can guide you as to when and how much of each type of exercise you should be getting.
Chronic Back Pain
For people with lower back pain, the best aerobic exercises to do are low impact ones like swimming, walking and bike riding. Jogging, dance aerobics and step aerobics all produce repeated impact on your back and on your knee and hip joints as well. In order to get in good condition, start out with 15 minutes of light aerobic work per day, 2-3 times per week, and then gradually build yourself up to 30-40 minutes per day, 4-5 times per week.

You should be working enough to raise your heart rate to be in between 65% to 85% of your maximal heart rate. You determine your maximal heart rate by subtracting your age from 220. Regardless of whether you are walking, bike riding or doing any other aerobic exercise, always maintain good posture. This means sit up strait, stand strait and do not slouch or lean forward. Good posture is essential to any good exercise program.

When it comes to resistance exercising, you always want to concentrate on the abdominal muscles. These muscles play a major part in giving your lower back support and the stronger they are, the more relief for your back. Also important is to do exercises that are designed to specifically strengthen the lower back muscles themselves. You will best benefit from working each muscle group 2-3 times per week. You may want to hire a qualified fitness trainer to help get you on your way by designing a resistance program that is right for you.

Remember that while resistance exercise is great for strengthening the targeted muscles being worked, there should never be any pain involved. Some discomfort should be present in the muscles being worked while performing the exercises for them, but should subside very shortly after completion of the exercise. If there is any pain during the exercises or if discomfort persists for some time after, it is a sign that something is wrong and exercising should be discontinued and your doctor should be consulted immediately.

As far as stretching is concerned, 10-15 minutes of moderate stretching per day is usually enough to get the job done just fine. Here you really want to concentrate on stretching your hamstrings which are the muscles in the back of your upper legs. The looser your hamstring muscles are, the better range of motion your back will have as flexible hamstring muscles do not put the strain on your lower back that tight ones do.

Stretching the lower back muscles is also a must and sitting on the floor with your legs flat on the floor in front of you while you slowly reach for your toes until you can’t go any further, hold for 10 seconds, and sit back up is a great exercise to stretch both your hamstrings and your lower back. Repeat this stretch 2-3 times each day.

While there are no miracle cures for lower back pain, you can make living with a lower back condition much easier to deal with by simply incorporating some exercise into your life each day. It is worth the effort in the long run give up 30-40 minutes per day, 4-5 days per week to exercise away your lower back pain.

Spinal decompression is an effective pain relief treatment for conditions such as a herniated disc, degenerative and isthmic spondylolisthesis, spinal stenosis, a bulging disc, and sciatica. The treatment relieves the pressure exerted on pinched nerves in the spinal column, and mitigates the effects of debilitating and chronic back pain.

Chief among the advantages of the spinal decompression procedure is the fact that it can achieve surgery-like results without the risks that back surgery necessitates, such as incision and anesthesia. Furthermore, no medications are necessary, and no negative side effects are associated with spinal decompression.

The process is simple: The patient lies on the decompression table and attaches a belt loosely around his or her waist. The table then gently pulls on the belt, alternating between periods of gentle tugging and relaxation, which opens the compressed spaces between discs. This spacing of the discs vacuums herniated matter back into its proper position, and releases pressure on spinal nerves and alleviates pain. The decompression procedure may last for up to thirty minutes, and the number of sessions required varies from patient to patient and the severity of his or her condition.
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Non-surgical spinal decompression has worked wonders for many people for whom no other treatment has been effective. Practices approved to offer spinal decompression services also rigorously train their therapists to ensure a full familiarity with the technology, and the best practices for applying it to the needs of each individual patient. Patients don’t need to experience the stress of undergoing a surgery. They can also return to work in a shorter period of time.

4 out of 5 people suffer from lower back pain at least once in their life and many suffer with recurring bouts. I don’t know about you, but when I was younger I thought I could do anything, and I usually could. But ultimately if you don’t take care of your back throughout your life or misuse it, it will catch up to you as it did me.

Through the years of dealing with back pain, I have acquired some really good exercises that help ease your back and help with overall posture.

Exercises for easing lower back pain

- Abdominal crunches, when done properly (by keeping your lower back flat on the floor and supported while crunching), strengthen the abdominal muscles and may decrease the tendency for lower back problems. Many times the pain is made worse by poor posture and flabby abdominal muscles which put more pressure on the spine. I have found these to be very helpful for my back.

- The pelvic tilt has also been very helpful for me to ease tight back muscles, plus it really feels good!
Lower back pain treatment
- Standing arms length away from the wall and leaning your lower back in toward the wall is great for lower back pain. Lean in as far as you can because this will stretch out your vertebrae and can put them back in alignment. This one really, really feels good when you are suffering from back pain. Hold that position as long as it feels comfortable to. You can also do this by placing your hands on a table or counter and leaning the lower back in toward the table or counter.

- In your everyday activities as you are walking around, just suck in your stomach and tighten the abdominal muscles and hold as this really strengthens the abdominals for better posture and support of a healthy lower back.

- Stay active in general. An inactive lifestyle contributes to lower back problems.

- Wear flat shoes or shoes with heels of 1″ or less. Higher heels put strain on your spine by taking it out of the right alignment. Sure wish I would not have worn those high heels while I was younger!

Drug-free applications for relieving lower back pain

There are many over the counter medications to reduce pain, inflammation or swelling caused by back pain. Unfortunately, those come with a high cost – side effects!

Pain Relief Patch – Pain Relief Patch delivers a constant dose of Glucosamine and Chondroitin over a 24 hour period and gives you no need to worry about pain and taking pills throughout the day.

Diclofenac Gel online – is an NSAID, used to treat the symptoms of pain and inflammation.

There are many natural remedies out there that can become a part of your lifestyle that are totally safe. I have found the absolute best topical application that just totally turned my life around as far as relieving my lower back pain.