Alternative Medicine for Back Pain

What works?

While the medical establishment tends to be wary of alternative medicine for back pain, there are certain alternative therapies that can be effective in relieving back pains. Below are a few that have been proven to be effective in treating the problem.

Chiropractic

In a study at the Northwick Park Hospital, UK, chiropractic treatment was found to be more effective than hospital outpatient management, mainly for patients with chronic or severe back pain. In the study, 741 patients took part and after 2 years of research, the study showed that chiropractic treatment is better than outpatient care.

Alexander Technique

What is it?
Alexander technique is a method to re-learn correct posture and to naturally relieve the pain and stress from the way the body has been misused during daily activities. Alexander Technique does not use any external device for treatment but a student (or patient) will be taught on using the body correctly.

Is it an effective alternative medicine for back pain?
If you are looking for long term solution to back pain problem, Alexander Technique is another option that you should consider. Because this therapy actually teaches you how to sit, stand and do all daily tasks using the correct posture, you will tackle the back pain problem at its root. The ongoing studies at Kingston Hospital, London shows that Alexander Technique is able to help patients with chronic back pains.

What is Massage Therapy?
Massage therapy is an alternative medicine technique that touches the skin and affect the muscles directly under it, sometimes with the use of massage oils. It helps in making sure that blood flows in the body more effectively. Although it is normally used to induce general relaxation , massage has also be found effective in treating illnesses like high blood pressure, sinusitis, headache and insomnia

Is it an effective alternative medicine for back pain?
Researchers from Institute for Work and Health, Canada had studied established medical journals (from Medline, Embase, Cochrane Controlled Trials Register.. etc) for any evidence that could support the claims by massage therapists that massage could help back pain sufferers. Their conclusion? From all these studies, the researchers found that massage might be beneficial for patients with sub-acute and chronic non-specific low-back pain, especially when combined with exercises and education.

What is Acupuncture?
Acupuncture involves the stimulation of specific points on the skin, usually by the insertion of needles. Traditional acupuncturists understand health in terms of a vital force or energy called ‘Qi’(pronounced ‘chee’. They believe that when this particular force is blocked, diseases occur. Although modern medicine rejects the idea of Qi, they have found that acupuncture points do influence the state of other parts of the body

Is it an effective alternative medicine for back pain?
There have been randomized controlled trials done to determine if acupuncture helps in relieving back pain. Most of these trials have shown that acupuncture provided relief but these results have been rejected because the quality of the trials was considered to be poor (source: National Library of Medicine).
In short, the effectiveness of acupuncture as an alternative treatment for back pains remains unclear.

Our Final Words
Despite these encouraging findings keep your doctor informed if you decided to try any one of them.

If you are thinking of using any of these alternative medicines and would like to get a cheaper treatment, you may want to check out the MedExpress Benefits discount card too.

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