Anti-Aging Information

According to neurosurgeon and low back pain specialist Dr. Chuck Burton of the Minneapolis Institute for Low Back Care, the normal back typically becomes dysfunctional by the time we reach the age of 50 to 60. This could seem like some mighty depressing information. However, I'm 52, and I do everything almost without a suggestion of back pain.

Much of what goes wrong, says Burton, has a great deal to do with the hostile environment of our planetthe high gravitational force of Mother Earth (on our back), compounded by such correctable factors as a sedentary lifestyle, poor nutrition, plus stress and a boatload of bad habits, such as smoking and drinking too much. For many of us, unfortunately, this is a lot of what life can be all about.

In only 2 percent of acute back problems is an initial specific diagnosis ever actually made. Eighty percent of people who have acute back pain manage to get better without any medical help. However, the cost while you are waiting for that to happen spontaneously is $6,000 or so, what with lost work, medications, and other bills. So the goal is to screen out all those with a specific diagnosis, treating all the rest with an effective conservative back program. More on the specifics about that in a moment.
There are several theories about what causes our lower backs to give us such trouble.

Theory 1Too Much Stress Can Do It

It is difficult to document, but easy to believe, that there are stressors or psychological events that build up in your life until your body says, "Help! I've got to stop, I'm on overload!" Perhaps it is a collection of overwhelming events in your life that can precipitate back pain. On a subconscious level, perhaps it is far easier to accept disabling back pain than the reality of the stressors possibly responsible.