Popping pain killers too often? Here's why you should stop ignoring your back pain right away!

Popping a pain killer to cope with back pain may not be the best answer, as, like diabetes, back pain affects other parts of your body and becomes more and more severe with time.

Most people in India ignore back pain when it is acute and seek medical help only when it is accompanied by some other form of chronic pain, says a study.

Popping a pain killer to cope with back pain may not be the best answer, as, like diabetes, back pain affects other parts of your body and becomes more and more severe with time, the researchers warned ahead of World Spine Day Oct 16.

"It is important to understand that back pain is a symptom of a medical condition," said Nithij Arenja from Qi Spine Clinic in Mumbai.

"Back pain can be a sign of a serious medical problem, although it may not be the underlying cause," Arenja added.

The researchers found that 56% patients had waited for almost one and a half months before taking action about their back pain.

While the worldwide trend is that 20% of back pain patients become chronic, in India, 56% patients are chronic even before they seek serious help, the findings showed.