Almost nine out of 10 treatments that you seek for your short-term back pain do not work, say researchers. According to scientists, only anti-inflammatories like ibuprofen and aspirin prove to be of any use to treating shooting, burning, or stabbing feelings in your back.

An Australian team that studies the best non-surgical ways to treat your back pain said steroid injections, paracetamol, acupuncture, heat, massage, osteopathy, electrical nerve stimulation, and muscle relaxants had no proven benefit. Spinal manipulation, antidepressants, and drugs to target specific pain receptors do give some relief with long-term pain, as does exercise. However, evidence has been inconclusive for dozens of other popular treatments like acupuncture, reflexology, and radiotherapy.

“Our review did not find reliable evidence of large effects for any of the included ­treatments and most non-surgical treatments for low back pain were not efficacious,” Dr. Aidan Cashin, study author, told The Sun.

According to doctors, chronic back pain is usually age-related or due to an injury. But with changing lifestyles, even young people are prone to it. The most common causes include:

The gradual thinning of the cartilage inside the spine

Spinal stenosis

Narrowing of the spinal canal that may lead to nerve pain

Problems like herniated or bulging disk

muscle pain and tenderness without a clear cause

According to experts, in many cases, it is even difficult to pinpoint the cause of chronic back pain.

According to experts, stretching and low-impact activities like yoga, water aerobics, and swimming can help alleviate back pain. You can consider starting a daily exercise programme that includes strength training and stretching to help keep muscles flexible and strong.

It has been proven that regular exercise also prevents future back pain episodes that are due to tight muscles. A few exercises that work, include:

Yoga helps improve mobility and decrease pain while improving mental and physical function.

This fun exercise follows basic principles, which include centring or tightening the torso muscles, concentration, managing posture, precision, flow, and breathing.

It is a traditional Chinese exercise that reduces pain and improves function.

These exercises improve the coordination and activation of torso muscles. These may help reduce pain, decrease tension and muscle spasms, and improve torso stiffness.

Regular aerobic exercise improves your physical function, muscle endurance, pain, and mental health. The exercise can be high, moderate, or low intensity according to your needs and requirements.

Both walking and running are cost-effective ways of improving health and strengthening muscles.

Swimming helps strengthen your back muscles.

It is important to be aware of posture. While trying to correct it may seem difficult at first, it can help reduce the possibility of future injuries.

You must try to lift the head and pull the shoulders back, rather than slumping forward and tightening abdominal muscles.

Lifting heavy items or sitting for long periods may result in back pain.

Make sure to distribute weight on both sides of the body rather than leaning on one leg or side.

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