Walking regularly or biking has a direct correlation to decreasing hospitalization rates of sciatica. It is said that two out of five people have sciatica, so next time that you commute, you should consider not using public transport and instead bike or walk to get your way around. There are natural remedies as well in solving sciatica, but to prevent symptoms, getting active is the way to go. Below is the study performed in Finland done to sciatica patients.
Study
Researchers used data on 35,000 citizens in Finland in thirty years. They determined that obese patients that smoked cigarettes have an increased 33 percent chance of being hospitalized for sciatica, while those that chose to use a bike or walk to commute decreased the patient count by 33 percent. It is found out that the protective effect of cycling and walking against the harmful effects of obesity, smoking, and being overweight are substantial. While sciatica rarely needs surgery, it is a condition caused by severe back pain in the lower region.
Numbers
The research interpreted 34,589 records of patients of four other studies over 12 to 30 years of the follow-up period. There are 1,259 hospitalizations based on those numbers.
Findings
Obesity increased the rate of hospitalization by 36 percent due to abdominal fat. It accelerated the development of sciatica to 41 percent, while other types of leisure time activities did not affect being hospitalized. The researchers noted that weekly to daily low physical activity like biking and walking are said to be effective prevention measures because it does not hurt the lower back. In contrast to this, high-intensity activity is dangerous for sciatica patients because it will worsen sciatica symptoms.
Limitation Factors
The study’s limitations are that most of the data were self-reported, and researchers are unable to confirm what additional health determinants are involved with hospitalization rates. The study utilized many questions regarding leisure-time physical activity, and these surveys did not have enough data to necessarily distinguish gender-related differences.
The researchers also mentioned that investigations in the future should review related data to named factors and then estimate the information against the exercise directly. They also added that little changes from bad habits should be changed into good ones that can help decrease your chances of getting sciatica and relieve lower back pain.