Many studies, including a recent study published in the ‘The Spine Journal’ have shown a causal link between sitting time and low back pain.
Low back pain is the most common musculoskeletal problem in the world and it is estimated that up to 80% of the general population will have back pain at one time in their life. There are many complex factors that cause low back pain however many researchers have shown strong links between low back pain and occupations.
Our spines were not designed to sit for long periods however in modern day society many jobs involve sitting At desks, driving or in meetings for long periods. In fact the average adult spends half their waking hours sitting! And not only the average adult spend a lot of time sitting they do not do enough physical exercise.
The study in The Spine Journal by S-M.Park et al looked at over 5000 people from different backgrounds, occupations and general health and they concluded that sitting for prolonged periods was an independent risk factor for developing low back pain. They found that the longer the sitting time the greater the risk and in particular, sitting for than 7 hours a day significantly increases risk of chronic low back pain. Furthermore, long duration of sitting time with low physical exercise further increases the risk of low back pain.
Therefore the take home message is do not sit for long periods of time and take regular exercise. If your job involves you sitting for long periods then try to stand up and walk around regularly and if possible, stand (regularly) in meetings and take regular driving breaks.
