Try this to ease your backache ... leech saliva

SORE back? A blood-sucking leech might help, according to new research.

Doctors at the University of Berlin found placing the slimy parasite on the back for 60 seconds to be as effective as painkillers and yoga for easing pain.

Just one session of ‘leech therapy’ produced greater reductions in pain than four weekly sessions of yoga, physiotherapy or acupuncture.

Four weeks after the treatment, pain symptoms dropped by nearly half, according to the researchers.

Leeches are thought to promote healthy blood flow and reduce pain associated with osteoarthritis.

The secret is said to lie in the worm’s saliva, which contains substances that have anti-inflammatory, anti-coagulant and analgesic effects.