Obesity Linked to Chronic Back Pain

In a study published in the January 2013 issue of Spine, researchers in Norway have established a positive link between obesity and chronic lower back pain. The study was backed by census data of nearly twenty thousand men and women, aged 30-69 years and collected over a decade. Participants were divided into two groups; people without chronic back pain and those already experiencing chronic back pain. For the purposes of the study, 'chronic back pain' was defined as pain persisting for at least three months continuously over a year. The results, adjusted for age, physical activity levels, and other health factors indicated that the subjects who were 30 or more pounds overweight were 28 percent more likely to experience chronic lower back pain. The researchers pointed out that while the obesity may lead to the lower back pain, it is also possible that the lower back pain may lead to an increase in the subjects' obesity, due to decreased physical activity.