Backache: Prevention And Cure

Author: Dr. D.R. Gala, Dr. Dhiran Gala, And Dr. Sanjay Gala

Unless their backs are giving trouble, people take it for granted that their backs are in good shape. They could be wrong. In fact, they often are. Considering the alarming prevalence of backaches, there is good likelihood that the day will soon come when they will end up in a doctor’s clinic, pleading for relief from incapacitating back pain.

• If you are an executive, leading a sedentary life
• If you are a worker required to take on sporadic physical tasks
• If you are a pregnant woman
• If you find your back stiff and uncomfortable in the morning
• If you play sports only on week-ends and find on Monday that your back is aching up
• If you have suffered fro a backache earlier

Then You are a prime Candidate for back problems

Don’t wait till an attack of backache strikes. Take appropriate steps to prevent it.

Most backaches are caused by weakness or shortness of one or more muscles associated with the back. This book describes a simple ‘seven-step test’ to assess the efficiency of back muscles. Take this test today and find out how your muscles measure up.

The book also describes simple and effective exercises to strengthen weak muscles. With your back thus reconditioned, you shall be able to thumb your nose at backache — forever I If backache has already struck, the book will enable you to understand what your doctor says. Besides, it will also suggest what you can do yourself to overpower pain; it will then proceed to show you the way to prevent a recurrence of pain.

Almost eight persons out of ten suffer from acute backache least once in their lives. About sixty percent of backache at lest belong to the age group of 21-40 years. In other words, backache strikes persons when they are in the prime of lives. Lives. Gloomy statistics, indeed.

Backache is a major cause of absenteeism in industry. The resultant loss of production makes industrialists lose their sleep. If the industry is concerned about the waste of money, we as are just concermed about the waste of people. Sincere and hardworking they don’t want to cause any difficulty and yet, because of back problems, they are unable to perform their effectively.

Each day, thousands (perhaps lakhs) of persons remain absent from work and cannot fulfil social responsibilities because t backache. Thus back pain is a major social problem. What not be expressed in numbers, although it is of equal or cer importance, is the profound suffering and compromise the quality of life that backache victims experience.

We believe that a doctor must fully enlighten and educate Pe tient about his or her backache A doctor must not only t wtat is wrong but what the diagnosis means, what it can w.loo into and why certain treatment b prescribed. Lately, there are not many doctors who have the time w inclination for such discussion with their patieni reason for bringing out this book.

However, the more important reason for the publication of s ok is the realisation on our part that back-care should directed more at prevention of backache rather than Prevention is better than c e. And backache !f that is easy to prevent.

We have tried to remain clear and simple; but, we have divide important concepts and facts about back-care just they seem technical or complex. We believe that an to all relevant information on this subject will be to a’s benefit.

Finally, the information given in this book is based not only on our own experience but has also been drawn from that of some world-authorities in the field of back-care. That is to say, the reader is not just getting a ‘one man’s opinion; there is a lot of scientific evidence to back the information offered. Suggestions for the improvement of this book will not only be gratefully acknowledged and but will also be considered while bringing out its future editions.