Dr. Michelle Clark, D.C.

There is a huge correlation between chronic low back pain and a lack of core strength. Here is a video showing some tips on how to relieve, correct, and possibly prevent low back pain with a few simple exercises. Please be aware that if you back pain persists for more that a few weeks, you should probably see a doctor.

I am here to help.

Dr. Clark

I know this sounds crazy, but I agree with the information contained in this BBC article when referencing the back. I urge my patients to avoiding sitting really close to their computers, but it is hard for people accomplish if they have a hard time looking at their computer screens. When was the last time you had your eyes checked?

Slouching over a desk is certainly not recommended. Sitting up straight is not the best position for office workers, a study has suggested. Scottish and Canadian researchers used a new form of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to show it places an unnecessary strain on your back. They told the Radiological Society of North America that the best position in which to sit at your desk is leaning back, at about 135 degrees. Experts said sitting was known to contribute to lower back pain. Data from the British Chiropractic Association says 32% of the population spends more than 10 hours a day seated. Half do not leave their desks, even to have lunch. Two thirds of people also sit down at home when they get home from work. Spinal angles The research was carried out at Woodend Hospital in Aberdeen, Scotland. Twenty two volunteers with healthy backs were scanned using a positional MRI machine, which allows patients the freedom to move - so they can sit or stand - during the test. Our bodies are not designed to be so sedentary Rishi Loatey, British Chiropractic Association Traditional scanners mean patients have to lie flat, which may mask causes of pain that stem from different movements or postures. In this study, the patients assumed three different sitting positions: a slouching position, in which the body is hunched forward as if they were leaning over a desk or a video game console, an upright 90-degree sitting position; and a “relaxed” position where they leaned back at 135 degrees while their feet remained on the floor. The researchers then took measurements of spinal angles and spinal disk height and movement across the different positions. Spinal disk movement occurs when weight-bearing strain is placed on the spine, causing the disk to move out of place. Disk movement was found to be most pronounced with a 90-degree upright sitting posture. It was least pronounced with the 135-degree posture, suggesting less strain is placed on the spinal disks and associated muscles and tendons in a more relaxed sitting position. The “slouch” position revealed a reduction in spinal disk height, signifying a high rate of wear and tear on the lowest two spinal levels. When they looked at all test results, the researchers said the 135-degree position was the best for backs, and say this is how people should sit. ‘Tendency to slide’ Dr Waseem Bashir of the Department of Radiology and Diagnostic Imaging at the University of Alberta Hospital, Canada, who led the study, said: “Sitting in a sound anatomic position is essential, since the strain put on the spine and its associated ligaments over time can lead to pain, deformity and chronic illness.” Rishi Loatey of the British Chiropractic Association said: “One in three people suffer from lower back pain and to sit for long periods of time certainly contributes to this, as our bodies are not designed to be so sedentary.” Levent Caglar from the charity BackCare, added: “In general, opening up the angle between the trunk and the thighs in a seated posture is a good idea and it will improve the shape of the spine, making it more like the natural S-shape in a standing posture. “As to what is the best angle between thigh and torso when seated, reclining at 135 degrees can make sitting more difficult as there is a tendency to slide off the seat: 120 degrees or less may be better.”

A patient of mine sent me this article on a vanity shoe that started helping women with their chronic low back pain. I have attached the article below and although it seems to have some research behind it, I was curious has anyone tried these out?

Everyone’s Flipping over the “Miracolous” FitFlop

Designed for women seeking toned legs without the gym, a humble sandal is now helping those with chronic back pain

By Ian Johnston
Sunday, 18 May 2008

At £90 a pair, the latest range of flip-flops might seem an unlikely summer bestseller. But, according to an adviser on biomechanics to UK Athletics, this is not simply beachwear: the FitFlop appears to be capable of performing miracles.

Despite the product being originally designed and marketed as a “vanity shoe” that would help body-conscious women to tone their bottoms and legs, stories of how people crippled with arthritis or back pain are suddenly able to walk again are flooding in, according to the manufacturers.

On Friday, the FitFlop gained influential public support from Oprah Winfrey when she named it as one of her summer favourites on her television talkshow in the US, while other celebrities including Hilary Swank, Heidi Klum, Jennifer Garner and Jessica Biel, have a pair. Jade Johnson, the Olympic long jumper who suffers from a painful foot condition, found she gained the same benefit from wearing them as exercises recommended by her physiotherapist.

The FitFlop is said to produce a similar effect to walking barefoot, but with a degree of shock absorption. This makes the muscles work harder, creating the toning effect.

But Dr Phil Graham-Smith, head of the directorate of sport at Salford University and a consultant biomechanist for UK Athletics, also believes they may make the body adjust its walk to ensure the knee is correctly aligned.

“We carried out some independent tests and they came out quite favourably,” he said.

Dr Graham-Smith, who works with Britain’s jumping athletics team, said Johnson had benefited from wearing FitFlops. “She suffers from plantar fasciitis, which causes pain in the heel. Her physio gives her drills like walking through sand to help strengthen the arch of the foot,” he said.

“When she tries these on, she gets the same benefit as walking through sand and prefers using the FitFlops because, of all things, she has an allergy to sand.”

Marcia Kilgore, founder of the FitFlop company, admitted they were initially designed for their cosmetic effect on the body.

“They were originally launched as a vanity shoe – you could walk and help tone your legs. But over and over again, we’d hear things like ‘I’ve had a degenerative spine disease, haven’t been off morphine, and all I have to do is put on a pair of FitFlops and suddenly I don’t feel pain any more’,” she said. “A lot of people with severe and chronic back pain have reported a vast improvement, an almost miraculous improvement on putting these things on.”

The FitFlop was launched in May last year and has sold more than a million pairs, mostly in the US and UK. The basic style costs £36, but in keeping with this summer’s trend, Roman sandal-style versions costing £90 have been introduced.