World Spine Day
The 16th of October is World Spine Day - an annual health initiative aiming to encourage good spinal health habits.
The theme for World Spine Day 2021 is ‘Back2Back’, reflecting the need to reset and refocus on spinal pain and disability as part of the global burden of disease.
With the world’s focus on battling a global pandemic, other important health issues can easily be overlooked. With an estimated 540 million people in the world suffering with low back pain at any one time, it remains the leading cause of years lived with disability.
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) reports that musculoskeletal conditions contribute to 13% of Australia’s total burden of disease experienced, and over one-third of the disease burden is potentially preventable.
Effective management and prevention is therefore key and this year’s World Spine Day encourages people to take care of their spinal health and overall wellbeing.
Back2Back focuses on highlighting ways in which people can help their spines by staying mobile, avoiding physical inactivity, not overloading their spines and adopting healthy habits such as weight loss and smoking cessation.
The Australian Chiropractors Association (ACA) have created two apps to help:
Straighten Up – the Straighten Up app is designed to act as ‘Your Pocket Chiropractor’ and includes a 3-minute spinal health program designed to improve spinal health, stabilise core muscle groups and more.
You can also set reminders to receive notifications about:
- sitting right;
- stretching;
- taking breaks; and
- improving your posture.
Exercises can be completed at any time of day but are most beneficial when they form part of a daily routine. It’s hoped that over time all Australians will take a few minutes every day to care for their spinal health.
Studies conducted overseas indicate that 90% of people who adopted the exercises as part of their daily routine reported a postural improvement. Approximately 80% reported that their backs are more comfortable and that they have better core stability after practicing the activities for several weeks.
Download the app and let us know how you go.
Just Start Walking - The human body was designed for movement, so to keep your spine at its best, we should stay active. In other words, a healthier spine means a healthier life!
The Just Start Walking initiative was developed to raise awareness about the importance of keeping active, the benefits this can offer to your overall well-being and spinal health, as well as providing an easy-to-use program to help encourage regular physical activity.
- You can map your walk using the GPS feature, which tracks your kilometers, time taken and pace.
- Save your walks to see your progress and share them on social media to encourage others to get active.
- Discover new, local walks in your area that keep walking fun and adventurous. opting healthy habits such as weight loss and smoking cessation.
The team have installed the app and taken up the challenge!
We will be sharing some of our walks with you and we encourage you to download the app and share yours with us as well as any amazing photos taken during your walk. You can send your walks and photos with us by emailing enquiries@chiroactive.com.au.