Home Remedies for BACKACHE / BACK PAIN

Backache is one of the most common ailments prevalent today. Sedentary living habits, hazardous work patterns and psychological conditions associated with emotional stress, which bring about spasm of the muscles, cause backaches. As the back bears the weight of the entire body, overweight persons feel the strain on the back when they have to carry an extra load.

Symptoms of Backache or Back pain

Pain in the middle of back or lower down

In most cases of backache, the pain is usually felt either in the middle of the back or lower down. It may spread to both sides of the waist and the hips. In a condition of acute pain, the patient is unable to move and is bedridden.

People suffer from cervical and lumbar spondylosis

About ninety per cent of backache patients suffer from what is called cervical and lumbar spondylosis. It is a degenerative disorder in which the different vertebrae adhere to each other through bony unions. As a result of this, the spine loses its flexibility.

Causes of Backache

Muscular tension, straining of the joints, poor posture

The main causes of backache and spondylosis are muscular tension, straining of the joints, poor posture, and incorrect nutrition resulting from dietetic errors and lack of exercise.

Kidney or prostate problems, female disorders, influenza

Acute or chronic illnesses like kidney or prostate problems, female disorders, Influenza, and arthritis, may also lead to backache.

Sitting for a long time, high heels

Other causes include stress and strain resulting from sitting for a long time, improper lifting of weights, high heels, and emotional problems which may cause painful muscle cramping.

Home Remedies for Backache

Backache treatment using Garlic

The most important home remedy for backache is the use of garlic. Two or three cloves should be taken every morning to get results. An oil prepared from garlic and rubbed on the back will give great relief. This oil is prepared by frying ten cloves of garlic in 60 ml of oil in a frying pan. Any of the oils which are used as rubefacients, such as mustard oil. sesame oil, and coconut oil can be used according to one's choice. They should be fried on a slow fire till they are brown. After the oil has cooled, it should be applied vigorously on the back, and allowed to remain there for three hours. The patient may, thereafter, take a warm-water bath. This treatment should be continued for at least fifteen days.

Backache treatment using Lemon

Lemon is another useful remedy for backache. The juice of one lemon should be mixed with common salt and taken by the patient twice daily. It will give relief.

Backache treatment using Chebulic Myroblan

The use of chebulic myroblan is beneficial in the treatment of backache. A small piece of this fruit should be eaten after meals. This will give quick relief.

Backache treatment using Vitamin C

Vitamin C has proved valuable in case of severe backaches. About 2,000 mg of this vitamin should be taken daily for treating this condition. Considerable improvement will be noticeable within two days.

Backache treatment using Potato

Raw potato is an ancient home remedy for backache, characterised by incapacitating pain in the lumbar region, especially in the lower part of the back. Application of raw potato in the fom of a poultice has been found very effective in this condition.

Dietaries for Backache

Salad of raw vegetables, plenty of fruits

The diet of those suffering from backache should consist of a salad of raw vegetables such as tomato, carrot, cabbage, cucumber, radish, lettuce, and, at least two steamed or lightly cooked vegetables such as cauliflower, cabbage, carrot, spinach, and plenty of fruits, except bananas. The patient should have four meals daily. Fruit and milk are advised for breakfast, steamed vegetables and wholewheat chapatis for lunch; fresh fruit or fruit juice in the evening; and a bowl of raw salad and sprouts during dinner.

Avoid fatty, spicy fried foods and processed foods

The patient should avoid fatty, spicy, and fried foods; curd, sweetmeats and sugar; condiments; and tea and coffee. Foods that have been processed for preservation have few nutrients and should also be eliminated from the diet.

Other Backache treatments for back pains

Avoid smoking and tobacco intake

Smoking or taking tobacco in any from should be given up completely.

Hot fomentation and alternate sponging

Hot fomentation, alternate sponging, or application of heat to the back will also give immediate relief.

Yogic asanas are also useful

Yogic asanas which are beneficial in the treatment of backache are bhujangasana, shalabhasana, halasana, uttanpadasana and shavasana.

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Raise your fitness level. "If you have a back injury that does not require surgery, studies indicate your aerobic capacity level is the single most important predictor of getting better," Dr. Lovejoy says. In other words, if you're physically fit, you're much more likely to recover.

That's why daily aerobic exercise is the "treatment of choice" in the view of Dr. Lovejoy and many other doctors. "For the construction workers I treat, I recommend brisk walking with hand weights and strength training with free weights," Dr. Lovejoy says. Adds Dr. Haldeman: "Do anything and everything that you can do comfortably and continuously. "

Cushion your dogs. The pounding stress that running, and even just walking, normally produces is transmitted right up your back. And for a weak back, that can mean pain.
"Shoes designed specifically to absorb shock, such as running shoes, or special shock-absorbing inserts available at sporting goods stores may reduce back pain," says researcher Arkady Voloshin, Ph.D., professor of engineering in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Mechanics at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. In one study, Dr. Voloshin found that 80 percent of back pain sufferers reported rapid and significant relief when they switched from basic street shoes to lightweight, flexible-soled shoes with simple shock-absorbing cushions.

Get horizontal-- then get going. Rest, not exercise, is what most doctors recommend initially for acute back pain. "But we tell people that in order to get their circulation going, they need to be up and walking around for 45 minutes of every three hours," Dr. Lovejoy says. "Otherwise, they stiffen up like a board, and everything they do hurts."

Don't overdo a rest stop. More than two days' bed rest may not be, helpful, according to Richard A. Deyo, M.D., D.P.H., professor in the Departments of Medicine and Health Services at the University of Washington in Seattle.

He found that back pain sufferers who were advised to stay in bed just two days missed 45 percent fewer days of work during the following three months than patients advised to rest for a full week. Muscles may weaken quickly with bed rest, and weak muscles can perpetuate an aching back.

Turn to aspirin, Advil or Tylenol. Any over-the-counter painkiller that contains aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil) or acetaminophen (Tylenol) could ease your back pain, according to Dr. Haldeman. But don't use painkillers before the fact. "If you know you are going to have back pain if you do something such as running, it's better not to do the activity than to mask your pain with drugs," says Dr. Haldeman. And do not give aspirin to children because of the risk of Reye's syndrome.

Get a posture check. Neither a fence post nor a spaghetti noodle be. An erect but relaxed stance, both standing and sitting, puts the least stress on back muscles, experts say.

Find your most restful position. Is your lower back acting up? Try this relaxation tactic: Lie on the floor with your knees bent at a 90-degree angle and your calves resting on the seat of a chair. "This position reduces pressure in your back more than anything else," Dr. Haldeman says. "Most people find it very comfortable. "

Warm up your muscles before you hit high gear. Like old rubber bands, stiff muscles can fray when they're stretched by sudden movement. So warm up first with a few minutes of relaxed walking. Swing your hips and arms as you walk, then try a few slow side-to-side twists. If you're planning a specific activity, such as a golf swing, go through the motion several times, slowly, before you add speed and force.

Try some aqua- and yoga-laxation. Water exercises, especially an arthritis range-of-motion program, are a safe and effective way to knock the rust off back muscles that haven't been stretched for a while, says Dr. Haldeman. Check with your doctor, hospital or health center to find out where these programs are offered. Many people with back problems benefit from yoga, too, according to Dr. Haldeman--provided they begin slowly and advance according to their tolerance and ability.

When to See the Doctor

Seventy to 90 percent of back pain goes away by itself or with some minor home treatment," says Scott Haldeman, M.D., D.C., Ph.D., associate clinical professor in the Department of Neurology at the University of California, Irvine, and adjunct professor at the Los Angeles Chiropractic College.
See a doctor if your back pain doesn't improve after three days--or if the pain is so bad you can't budge from the bed. You'll also need a doctor's advice if your legs are weak or numb or if back pain is accompanied by fever. Other call-the-doctor symptoms include stomach cramps, chest pain and difficulty breathing.
In some cases, back pain may be associated with loss of bowel or bladder control. This demands immediate attention: It may indicate a severely herniated disk or spinal cord or nerve damage.

Roll on a tennis ball. It's possible to relieve pain with "acupressure' ' or "trigger point" treatment using a tennis ball, says Robert King, co-director of the Chicago School of Massage Therapy and a nationally certified massage therapist. (He also recommends some of the wooden "pain relievers" designed for people who have aches and pains--such as a Backnobber.)

For the tennis ball treatment: Lie on a hard surface and position the tennis ball under you so that it is pressing against a tender spot. Roll onto the ball gradually, utilizing your body weight until the pain and tenderness subside.

To decrease back pain, don't smoke. Experimental work has shown that smoking reduces the amount of oxygen that travels, via osmosis, to spinal disks at night while you sleep. "If you smoke a pack of cigarettes a day, you'll probably double the amount of back pain you would have if you didn't smoke," Dr. Lovejoy says.

Ice it up. To get ready for a gentle icing, first freeze some water in a small paper cup. When you're ready to use it, Dr. Haldeman says, peel back the side of the cup to expose about 1/2 inch or so of ice. Lie on your stomach with a towel on your back, and have a friend or spouse massage your aching spots with the ice. (The ice should not be applied directly to the skin.) You can also lie down on your back with your knees bent and slide a bag of crushed ice (wrapped in a wet towel) under the sore spot, Dr. Lovejoy says.

Warm up the ache. A heating pad or hot water bottle can help. Or simply curl up in front of a hot wood stove to ease your aches. How do you decide whether your aching back needs heat or cold? "You pick one or the other, try it for a while and see if it helps," Dr. Haldeman says.


Warning: The reader of this article should exercise all precautionary measures while following instructions on the home remedies from this article. Avoid using any of these products if you are allergic to it. The responsibility lies with the reader and not with the site or the writer.
Never use any home remedy or other self treatment without being advised to do so by a physician.