Does yoga help ease back pain?

Over the last few years, the popularity of yoga has skyrocketed. As research established the many benefits of yoga, many medical professionals, physiotherapist and celebrities are also taking up and recommend this wonderful practice. While many believe it to be not as important, yoga is not just another fad going around, for it provides the practitioner many mental and physical benefits.

Yoga poses helps maintain body postures, balance as well as body alignment. People with back pain can especially benefit from yoga such as healing injured back muscles, speeding time to recover from an injury, preventing re-injury and helping maintain a regular level of daily activities and avoid disability.

Among other things, by gently stretching and strengthening the muscles of the lower back and legs and increasing blood circulation, yoga helps ease back pain. This allows you to stretch and strengthen muscles that support and maintain the back and spine, such as the paraspinal muscles which help you bend your spine, the multifidus muscles that soothe and stabilize your vertebrae, and the transverse abdominis in the abdomen, which also assists in stabilizing your spine.

Numerous postures in yoga gently strengthen the muscles in the back, as well as the abdominal muscles. Since these muscles are essential components of the muscular network of the spine vis-a-vis helping the body maintain proper upright posture and movement, conditioning these muscles can greatly reduce back pain. Stretching is very essential for people with lower back pain.

Several people consider that suffering from back pain increases due to perception. Negative psychological and emotional factors may not necessarily change the physiology of the back, but may be inclined to magnify a problem that already is present. Alternatively some believe that psychological and emotional factors are the primary influence in the sensation of pain and can physically alter the body. On assorted basis, high stress and negative emotions may actually cause back pain which in turn create negative psychological and emotional feelings, perpetuating the cycle.

Research states that yoga is a great way of reaping mental and physical benefits such as relieving backache. Having said that, it does not necessarily mean everybody should just go for yoga to alleviate their back pain. Listening to your body is also extremely important and you should not force any posture that could cause injury.  Be certain to talk with your doctor before you start any new yoga or exercise program because they can help you make out any possible risks and monitor your progress.