Prevent Back Reinjury while Cleaning House

This tip is courtesy of Dr. Thomas Keller, from Racine, Wisconsin.

The housekeeping motion that gets most people with back problems into trouble is vacuuming. This is because of the twisting movement that is automatic when you work the vacuum with one hand only.

Activities that employ the same motions as vacuuming (for example, raking) will affect the back in similar ways. So any motion that causes the spine to twist will tend to exacerbate symptoms.

In the case of vacuuming, if you can retrain yourself to use both hands, you can avoid most of the twisting motion in both upper and lower back. Mind you, this will not prevent problems in persons with existing conditions, but it will minimize aggravation of symptoms.