Patients at my Ann Arbor chiropractic office often ask, “How do I reduce my back pain without taking medication?” There are a number of ways. Below are some of the suggestions I give my Ann Arbor chiropractic patients.

1. Go to a chiropractor on a regular basis. Regular chiropractic treatments can help you avoid back pain – studies “back this up.” If you are in pain currently, chiropractic can help you get rid of the pain, and of course, chiropractic does not use medication.

2. Keep your weight as close to an ideal range as possible. Being overweight is known to contribute to back pain.  

3. Make sure to have correct posture. That is, correct posture in all things you do, not just when standing.

4. Make sure you are using a high-quality mattress. It should not be lumpy and bumpy. I recommend to my chiropractic patients that they use a mattress that is on the firm side, and that is comfortable to rest on.

5. Don’t overuse a back brace. If used too much, a back brace will not allow your core muscles to work hard enough, thereby causing your core muscles to weaken, which is bad for your back.

6. Regularly exercise your core muscles. This will help stabilize the core muscles so that your less likely to experience back pain. I consider the core muscles to be any muscles attached to your pelvis (hips). You can also think of your core muscles as those in your abs, middle of your back, your hamstrings, your quadriceps and your “glutes.” It’s important that you’re exercising the muscles in the front of your body as much as you’re exercising the muscles in the back of your body.  

7. Don’t smoke. Studies show that people who smoke are more likely to experience back pain.

So, there are many things you can do to help prevent back pain. I do not recommend following just one or a couple of the suggestions I’ve indicated above – you want to follow all of them, as they all are important in preventing back pain.

I hope I can help my Ann Arbor chiropractic patients reduce and prevent back pain through chiropractic adjustments and the suggestions I’ve given above, and I hope you can do the same, as well.

If you have any questions about this blog post, chiropractic, back pain, neck pain, or headaches I can be contacted at my Ann Arbor chiropractic office: [email protected].