Sleep Loss and Lower Back Pain

Low back pain (LBP) can arise from a lot of causes, most commonly
from bending, lifting, pulling, pushing, and twisting. However, there
are other possible causes, including sleep. This not only includes
sleeping in a crooked or faulty position, such as falling asleep on a
couch, in a chair or while riding in a car, but also from the lack of
sleep. So the question is, how much sleep is needed to feel restored
and how much sleep is needed to avoid low back pain?

It’s been shown that the lack of sleep, or chronic sleep loss,
can lead to serious diseases including (but not limited to): heart
disease, heart attack, heart failure, irregular heartbeat, high blood
pressure, stroke and diabetes.

Sleepiness can also result in a disaster; as was the case in the
1979 nuclear accident at Three Mile Island, the oil spill from the
Exxon Valdez, as well as the 1986 nuclear disaster at Chernobyl.

With sleep deprivation, our reaction time is slowed down, and
hence, driving safety is a major issue. The National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration estimates that fatigue causes more than 100,000
crashes per year with 1500 annual crash-related deaths in the US
alone.

Job related injuries are also reportedly more frequently,
especially repeat injuries in workers complaining of daytime
sleepiness which resulted in more sick days. An interesting study
(U.of Pennsylvania) reported that people who slept less than 5
hours/night for 7 nights felt stressed, angry, sad, and mentally
exhausted. As shown in another study of 10,000 people, over time,
insomnia (the lack of sleep) increases the chances by 5-fold for
developing clinical depression.

Regarding low back pain, what comes first? Does LBP cause sleep
interference or does sleep deprivation cause the LBP (or both)? It’s
been shown that sleep loss can lower your pain threshold and pain
tolerance, making any existing pain feel worse, so it works both
ways. Specific to LBP, in a study spanning 28 years, 902 metal
industry workers, sleep disturbances (insomnia and/or nightmares)
predicted a 2.1-fold increase in back pain hospitalizations with one
and a 2.4-fold increase with both sleep disturbances (insomnia and
nightmares). Other studies have shown patients with chronic LBP had
less restful sleep and more “alpha EEG” sleep compared to
controls. Similar sleep pattern differences using EEG
electroencephalogram – measures brain waves) have been shown when
comparing chronic LBP patients with depression vs. those without
depression compared to controls (non-LBP, non-depressed subjects).

So the BOTTOM LINE, talk to us about how chiropractic helps reduce
LBP, stress and facilitates sleep. There are also nutritional
benefits from Melatonin, Valarian root, and others that we can
discuss. Now, go to bed and get a good night’s sleep!