Ramadan is a beautiful time of the year; however, with the changes in diet and routine, some of us may grapple with an increase in lower back pain and heel pain during the month. HEALTH learns more…

Pay Attention to Your Posture

Lower back pain is more or less related to bad posture in most cases. The problem may arise or be more persistent during Ramadan because we tend to become careless in keeping our posture in check. People also spend more time praying and often forget the importance of proper posture while standing and bending. If not immediately, but in the long-term, this can aggravate the problem of lower back pain which is linked to a disc or even problems with heel pain and balance.

Physical Stress

Physical stress affects the disc and places stress on joints while mental stress causes spasms in the vessels and veins. The muscle needs blood flow in order to relax. So, if there is a lot of tension in vessels and veins, we don’t have enough blood flow to the muscles which may result in a painful muscle spasm.

Exercises to Help

1. Certain stretches done consistently throughout the day
can also help; for example, going into a kneeling position and then extending the arms to the front so that they increase the arch and the curve in the lower back. This position should be maintained for at least one minute and continued five times, three times a day.

2. For heel pain upon waking up in the morning, try to stretch the lower side of the foot. Hold the big toe and try to pull it up to stretch the fascia, as you stretch the plantar side of the foot. Start to massage the plantar side of the foot towards the toe.

(Credit: Dr. Adel Roujoula, specialist physical therapist)