It will be a special Mother’s Day this year for the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, following the birth of her daughter, Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana. However, new mums like the Duchess are particularly susceptible to back pain, which has been linked to an increase in symptoms of postnatal depression. This Mother’s Day, the Chiropractors’ Association of Australia would like to celebrate Mothers of all ages by highlighting the benefits of chiropractic and encouraging mums to look after their health, by maintaining good posture with a chiropractor.
While the Duchess will have all the help she needs raising her young children, most mums won’t be so lucky. Pregnant mums and mums with young babies carry a heavy burden – literally. Given the number of times a baby or toddler needs to be lifted and held daily, caring for child, can literally make parenthood a pain in the neck and back. However bad backs can often affect more than your physical health: a study published in the European Spine Journal highlighted that mothers with back pain were more likely to have symptoms of postnatal depression[1].
Manual labor often plays a large part in most mothers’ job descriptions. In addition to lifting and carrying children, mums may also have to contend with carrying diaper bags and other baby items, house work in addition to sometimes having full time jobs. Muscular aches are often inevitable, which may lead to long term back problems if left unchecked. Approximately 70% of women will, at some time in their lives, report low back pain. And during pregnancy, while 50–80% of women have reported back pain, one-third of pregnant women claim this low back pain is a significant problem[2].
Posture Problems for Pregnant Women and Mothers
Common posture problems affecting pregnant women and mums include uneven or rotated hips, forward head posture, an abnormal curve of the spine at the neck (increased Kyphosis) and forward tilt of the pelvis (increased Lordosis).
Chiropractic offers demonstrated relief for many of the specific health challenges affecting women, helping the body operate at its optimal performance.
Millions of women around the world are turning to chiropractic to help them face the different challenges and physical demands of motherhood. As a mum, visiting your local CAA Chiropractor can be beneficial to improving your spinal health and postural fitness.
With Spinal Health Week around the corner between May 25 - 31, there has never been a better time to get your happy back and maintain optimum spinal health. Make an appointment with our Chiropractor, Dr Jeremy Hammond, to assess your posture and if applicable, he can offer you Chiropractic care for long term health.
[1] Gutke A, Josefsson A, Oberg B. (2008) Pelvic girdle pain and lumbar pain in relation to postpartum depressive symptoms.
[2] Sabino, J., & Grauer, J. N. (2008) Pregnancy and Low Back Pain. Current Reviews in Musculoskeletal Medicine 1, 137-141