Going to work may ease backache

You might find your job a pain in the neck, but it seems that getting up and going to work will ease you of that nagging backache.

The finding is based on a study by researchers at the Work Foundation, who found that backache and arthritis sufferers should avoid taking time off from their jobs.

A reason why working can alleviate pain, the researches state, is because the company and support of colleagues not only boosts self-esteem, but also gives a sense of achievement.

Michelle Mahdon, a researcher at the charity, said work could be both the cause and cure of many musculoskeletal problems, a term which covers backache and rheumatoid arthritis, as well as damaged joints and tendons.

"It may aggravate symptoms of musculoskeletal disorders but evidence suggests that, with the right support arrangements, work can also be part of the recovery," said Michelle.

"What urgently needs to change is the attitude of many general practitioners and employers that a musculoskeletal disease sufferer must be 100 per cent well before any return to work can be contemplated. Too many of them see only incapacity rather than capacity," she said.

The charity's Fit for Work? report claims that there is evidence that not working is bad for people. "There is overwhelming evidence that worklessness is, itself, bad for health," says the report.

However, TUC general secretary Brendan Barber cautioned employers against insisting that people with backaches report for work.

"Although for some lower back conditions there is evidence that continued activity can be a useful part of rehabilitation, there is no such evidence for other musculoskeletal disorders," he said.

"In most cases, continuing the activity that caused the injury will just make things worse. This advice is at best simplistic -- and at worst dangerous," warned Brendan.