Keeping Your Back Healthy This World Spine Day
Each year on 16th October, people around the world come together to mark World Spine Day – a global initiative that raises awareness about spinal health and the importance of keeping our backs strong and pain-free. Supported by the World Federation of Chiropractic, the campaign highlights how crucial it is to stay active, adopt healthy habits, and prevent spinal problems before they take hold.
In 2025, the theme of World Spine Day continues to emphasise movement, resilience, and education – encouraging people of all ages to take small but meaningful steps toward better back health. And for those getting older, that message couldn’t be more relevant.
As we age, our backs start to remind us of the years spent gardening, working, and driving. For many people in their fifties and beyond, this can include the arrival of stiffness, aching, or morning soreness that wasn’t there before. You might notice discomfort after a long car journey or a twinge when getting out of bed and assume it’s simply part of getting older. While ageing inevitably brings a little stiffness, most back pain is a normal part of getting older. With the right approach, you can stay active, mobile, and strong well into later life.
Anthony Ghosh, Spinal Neurosurgeon and Founder of The Spine Multi-Disciplinary Team, has the ethos that motion is medicine and keeping your spine moving is the best way to protect it.
Anthony shares eight expert-backed tips for maintaining a healthy, happy spine as we age.
1. Don’t Panic About MRI Findings
If you’ve ever had a spinal scan, you may have seen words like “degeneration” or “disc changes.” These findings can sound alarming, but they’re actually a normal part of ageing. Many people with these changes have no pain at all.
2. Posture Doesn’t Cause Pain
It’s tempting to blame bad posture for back or neck problems, but research shows posture alone isn’t usually the culprit. What matters most is movement variety. If you sit for long periods, change positions often, stretch, or take short movement breaks.
3. Stay Active
Prolonged rest can actually slow recovery and stiffen joints. Gentle, regular movement helps your spine stay supple and your muscles stay strong.
4. Strength Training is Safe
Strong muscles provide natural support and protection, reducing the risk of injury. With the right guidance, resistance training is safe and highly effective at any age.
If you’re new to strength training, start light and seek advice from a physiotherapist or trainer experienced with older adults.
5. Sitting Isn’t the Problem
Many people worry about sitting too much, but sitting itself isn’t harmful; staying in one position for too long is. Set reminders to stand, stretch, or walk around every 30–60 minutes. A few minutes of movement can make a huge difference to how your back feels.
6. Keep Your Hobbies
Whether it’s gardening, golf, or hiking, staying engaged in the activities you love is key to both physical and mental well-being. You may just need to adapt how you do them.
7. Know the Red Flags
Most back pain improves with time and gentle movement, but a few symptoms require urgent attention. Seek medical help immediately if you experience:
- Leg weakness
- Loss of bladder or bowel control
- Numbness in the saddle area
These can signal a serious underlying issue that needs prompt care.
8. Motion is Medicine
Above all else, remember this: the more you move, the healthier your spine will be. Movement nourishes your spinal discs, strengthens muscles, and keeps your joints flexible. Back health after 50 isn’t about slowing down; it’s about moving smartly and confidently.
The Other Common Culprit
It’s not just the lower back that needs attention. Neck and shoulder pain are incredibly common as we age, with studies suggesting up to half of people over 60 experience persistent symptoms.
Much of this isn’t due solely to wear and tear, but rather how we use our bodies in modern life. Prolonged screen use, phone scrolling, or carrying heavy bags on one shoulder all contribute to muscle imbalance and strain.
Exercises That Help
The good news is that regular, targeted exercises can help strengthen your back and ease tension. Try these simple moves (ideally guided at first by a physiotherapist or osteopath):
- Shoulder Blade Squeezes (Scapular Retractions): Strengthen your upper back by gently pulling your shoulder blades together and holding for five seconds
- Resistance Band Rows or Lat Pulls: Build resilience in your lats and mid-back to support posture
- Gentle Core Exercises (like Bridges or Dead Bugs): Improve trunk stability to protect your lower back
- Neck Mobility Stretches: Slowly turn your head side to side and tilt your ear to your shoulder to keep your cervical spine loose and pain-free
A few minutes a day can make a real difference.
Keeping People Moving
World Spine Day is a reminder that spinal health matters at every age. For those over 50, it’s an opportunity to celebrate what your body can still do and to take simple, proactive steps to protect it for the future.
With the right knowledge, confidence, and care, you can continue doing gardening, golfing, walking, or simply enjoying daily life without fear of movement.
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