More walking, less back pain

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People who walk every day have a lower risk of developing lower back pain. According to an extensive Norwegian long-term study, the risk of chronic back pain is 23% lower in individuals who walk more than 100 minutes a day compared to those who walk less than 78 minutes a day.

For the study published in the journal “JAMA Network Open,” the team led by Rayane Haddadj from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology drew on data from the HUNT study—a large-scale health survey with tens of thousands of participants.

Of these, more than 11,000 adults who did not have chronic back pain at the start of the study between 2017 and 2019 wore movement sensors on their thighs and lower back for several days. This allowed the research team to record how much and how intensely people moved objectively. The HUNT health survey was repeated between 2021 and 2023, allowing the research group to compare the data.

The result: the risk of chronic back pain, defined as complaints over at least three consecutive months in the previous year, decreased with increasing walking time. Overall, 15 percent, or approximately 1,600 participants, reported persistent back pain in the four years or so following the first survey.

Quantity is more important than speed
In addition to the amount of walking, the intensity of walking was also associated with a lower risk, although this correlation was less pronounced. The researchers conclude that it is more critical for back health to walk a certain distance than to walk at a certain speed.

Bernd Kladny, Deputy Secretary General of the German Society for Orthopaedics and Trauma Surgery, who was not involved in the study, believes that measuring activity with pedometers and other so-called wearables is a suitable approach. He points out that although the intensity of walking is not particularly important for back pain, it is different for the cardiovascular system.

Simple and beneficial form of exercise
The study also has limitations, as the Norwegian research team itself writes. For example, walking activity was only recorded at one point in time and could have changed over the years. It was also an observational study: cause and effect could not be determined. It is conceivable, for example, that participants who take many steps pay more attention to their overall health and, consequently, possibly also to their back health. Factors that were not taken into account could also have influenced the results, such as other forms of physical activity or changes in health during the follow-up period.

Nevertheless, according to the research team, the results provide vital information for prevention. As walking is an easily accessible and inexpensive form of exercise, health promotion programs could target it, the authors say.