Several news articles and releases report that the second week of October in the United Kingdom is “Back Care Awareness Week”. One such article on October 6, 2012, in the Milton Keynes Citizen, starts off by noting that, “…the British Chiropractic Association is urging people to straighten out their approach to back care as new consumer research shows that almost half the UK population is affected by the condition.”
British Chiropractic AssociationThe article reports that 28 percent of UK citizens have suffered from long term back pain lasting over a year, but that 24 percent have not sought any form of professional care for their problem. Tim Hutchful, spokes person for the British Chiropractic Association states, “Back pain is something which must not be swept aside – not just by sufferers but by people of all ages who should think about preventative measures.”
A major focus of the BCA program is prevention of back issues by both thoughtful activity and exercises. Hutchful stresses the importance of prevention by noting, “Research shows that 43 per cent of people are limited in their activity by back and joint pain, so we all need to act to ease and prevent future problems to live life to the fullest”.
To help bring attention to back problem prevention, the BCA has created a series of instructional videos. These videos are available on the BCA website at www.chiropractic-uk.co.uk and include subjects such as, Buying a bed and sleeping, Computer Posture, Gardening, Driving, and Lifting and Carrying. The BCA has also created a series of printable flyers on a variety of topics including, Golf, Holiday Travel, Active Ageing, Skiing, and Commuting.
Hutchful of the BCA sums up the importance of this program by saying, “Education on the importance of posture and back care cannot begin early enough, the sooner action is taken the less likely future back pain will be. With recent research by the BCA showing that 42.5 per cent of people do not participate in any physical exercise, we must shape up and straighten up to keep our backs healthy”.
