If back supports are used correctly and in moderation, they can be helpful because they will help protect your spine from a hunched posture while keeping your shoulders and spine back.

There are low back supports that can be used for heavy lifting and other versions, which are designed to pull your shoulders back for improved posture. Both are great and can be effective if used in the right circumstances. If you need to move something really heavy like a piano, for example, wearing an artificial low back support is ideal because it will provide you with extra core stability. The human body is not meant to lift such heavy items but if you have to, make sure you wear low back support as it will help with the process.

Mid-back supports that loop over your shoulders can also be great because they will pull your shoulders back and prevent you from a hunched posture, which can compress your spine over time. This can lead to both arthritic degeneration and pain and back support can help. Many of us are guilty of a hunched posture because of the way we look down at our smartphones, the way we drive and the way we sit while working on our computers. These activities will accentuate bad posture but back support will help avoid it.

While there are certainly a lot of advantages to wearing back supports, you also have to consider the disadvantages and one of them is that they can weaken your body over time. If these supports are used too often, your body is going to rely on them and is going to get used to artificial means to achieve good posture. This will affect its natural ability to accomplish this type of stability on its own and can end up weakening your body as a result. Artificially stabilizing your lower back will give your body the idea that it does not have to maintain its core muscles because the job is being done without them. This is a problem because your core muscles are designed to provide your body with stability and when the back support takes this function away, those muscles will become weak. This can cause a number of problems, especially when you are not wearing your support because your muscles will be too weak to stabilize you, which can lead to disc bulges and more.

Using back supports for short-term use is okay but relying on them for extended periods of time can be problematic, so make sure you are mindful of this aspect. The team at Oshawa Chiropractic & Physiotherapy Wellness Centre can provide you with more information regarding this matter to ensure your body does not suffer. Whether you need physiotherapy, acupuncture, or a chiropractor, our clinic can help, so if you are in Oshawa, give our office a call today!