If you’ve ever traveled through a department store or grocery store while the workers were stocking the shelves or moving supplies, you may have probably noticed a back brace or belt in action. Many employers recommend and some even require back belts to reduce employee injuries and injury claims from arising.
Lots of people think that wearing back belts and back braces may help decrease injuries of the lower back. This certainly may not be the case as some research is now showing. Dr. Michael Pritsker is a chiropractor in San Diego. He reveals the benefits and the downside of wearing back braces, whether during work or exercising for the back muscles.
Are back belts really effective in preventing back injuries? This may not be the case according to a study in the December 6, 2000 issue of the Journal of the AMA. In the largest research study of its kind, incidence rates of workers’ compensation claims and 6-month incidence rates of self-reported low back pain were gathered from over 13,000 employees at 160 retail merchandise stores in 30 states.
A whopping Eighty-nine stores required back belt use and 71 had a voluntary back-belt policy. All employees were interviewed at the study’s inception and again at a two-year follow-up. The following are the findings.
Accounting for multiple risk factors, such as lifting frequency and/or a history of previous back injury, did not substantially alter the following findings. Results showed that neither frequent back belt use nor a store policy requiring such use had any significant effect on back injury claim rates or self-reported back pain.
In the year 1998, a United States Bureau of Labor Statistics survey revealed that Americans suffered nearly 300,000 back injuries due to overexertion strains. This problem resulted in lost days from work for many individuals. As the study shows, back braces and supports probably aren’t the answer to this growing problem. Fortunately, there are other options. Some of these include sound advice and care from experts in dealing with back pain.
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