New Study Says Regular Walk Can Reduce Lower Back Pain. Are You Listening?

A larger global population is currently facing a major health crisis, fuelled further by a surge in back and neck problems. An increase in sedentary lifestyles, along with obesity and remote working, has caused an enormous growth in low back pain (LBP). LBP, a pain that usually occurs between the lower edge of the ribs and the buttock, can make it extremely hard to move and hamper the quality of life. While people usually resort to medical interventions and therapies to treat the condition, a recent study suggests that something as basic as walking can also help reduce the symptoms of low back pain.

The study published in The Lancet journal derived its results from approximately 701 adults who had recently recovered from lower back pain (LBP). These adults were divided into three groups: one group underwent a personalised walking program, another group received physiotherapy sessions over six months, and the third group received no intervention at all.

After observing them for the stipulated period, the researchers found that those in the walking group experienced greater relief and a longer pain-free period before recurrences. “The intervention group had fewer occurrences of activity-limiting pain compared to the control group, and a longer average period before they had a recurrence, with a median of 208 days compared to 112 days,” said Professor Mark Hancock, the paper’s senior author.

Explaining that walking is a “low-cost, widely accessible, and simple” exercise, Hancock said it likely includes the combination of gentle oscillatory movements, loading and strengthening the spinal structures and muscles, relaxation and stress relief, and the release of “feel-good” endorphins. Besides, walking also comes with additional benefits like cardiovascular health, improved bone density, the maintenance of a healthy weight, and improved mental health.

On the other hand, Dr Natasha Pocovi, the lead author, asserted that their walking program not only improved people’s quality of life but also reduced their need to seek healthcare support. “Our study has shown that this effective and accessible means of exercise has the potential to be successfully implemented on a much larger scale than other forms of exercise,” she added. In the meantime, physiotherapy sessions require close expert supervision and expensive equipment, which is “less accessible” to the majority of patients.

The findings of the study underscore the need to prioritise basic lifestyle changes like regular walking. According to the WHO, LBP cases might increase to 843 million by 2050.