Low back pain can become debilitating. You hurt when you walk, when you sit, and even when you try to sleep. It’s infuriating. What can you do to fix it?

People try plenty of different treatments to deal with low back pain, from taking pain-relieving drugs to getting acupuncture. However, one method that not enough people consider is yoga.

When most people think of yoga, they think of exercise or meditation. But yoga for low back pain is a new and exciting way to help relieve your ailment. Recent studies show the benefits that yoga can have for people dealing with this chronic condition. Read on to discover why you should try yoga for low back pain.

Yoga For Low Back Pain: The Studies

Two recent studies conducted over the past year have found that yoga can help reduce lower back pain. Dr. Richard L. Nahin, of the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health at the National Institutes of Health, was the lead author of the first study. Nahin and his colleagues published their findings in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings in 2016. They discovered that, in addition to yoga, tai chi, and acupuncture were also effective in treating low back and neck pain.

Dr. Lisa Susan Wieland was the lead author on a review published in the Cochrane Library. While Nahin’s study examined multiple non-drug treatments for low back and neck pain, Wieland and her colleagues’ research specifically focused on yoga and its benefits.

The Benefits

So what are the actual benefits of doing yoga for low back pain? Can it actually help? The answer is yes, but to varying degrees.

Nahin and his team found that both yoga and acupuncture are safe and effective ways of relieving back pain. Wieland and her team also discovered that yoga can help reduce back pain and improve back function. However, Wieland’s findings suggest that the aid yoga provides may be only moderate. Yoga should not be the only treatment people seek, but there is no denying that it helps.

Wieland and her team’s review also states that yoga is most effective when people try it within the first 6 to 12 months after they begin experiencing low back pain.

The Price

In an effort to treat their back pain, people will try many different options no matter how expensive they are. For them, the price doesn’t matter as long as it helps make them feel better. However, another enticing reason to try yoga for low back pain is its low cost. The price of a yoga class is much lower than the cost of other methods people use to reduce their pain. The price range for a regular yoga class is typically $10 to $20.

Are you having problems with neck or back pain? Unsure of what you should do to treat it? Talk to Dr. Busch about combining yoga with the DRS Protocol®. Contact us to request an appointment today.