Move it or lose it … as in your health

Only about 47 percent of Americans meet at least one of the recommended levels of weekly physical activity — 150 minutes of moderate exercise and two days of muscle strengthening per week — according to a new survey from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Around 22 percent to 29 percent meet both recommendations.

One reason is that 80 percent of jobs require mostly sedentary activities. Physically demanding jobs account for less than 20 percent of employment.

A new study in JAMA Network Open shows that every little bit of forward motion helps.

The researchers looked at 481,688 folks for around 13 years. They found that anyone who had a mostly sitdown job had a 34 percent higher risk of cardiovascular disease and a 16 percent higher risk of dying from any cause compared to folks who mostly were standing while working.

The good news is that they

DR. OZ AND DR. ROIZEN

also found that you can start small to reverse the effects of being sedentary. When folks who sit a lot at work and get only 15 to 30 minutes of leisure time physical activity daily add in just 15 minutes a day of exercise, they upgrade their health; sedentary folks getting no to 15 minutes of leisure time activity daily need to add 30 minutes.

Back away from pain

Lower back pain is the leading cause of disability. Fortunately, in around 90 percent of cases, it’s temporary and pain improves without surgery, according to the American Association of Neurological Surgeons. But even if it is transitory, about half the time there’s another flare-up within a year.

Often, pain results from a strain or sprain to muscles or tendons in the back caused by sitting in a hunched position, being sedentary, a lousy mattress, not exercising, being overweight or wrenching your back while lifting or moving. Cigarette smoking and vaping are also major causes because they trigger inflammation. Fortunately, you can do a lot to ease your discomfort.

The Back Pain Research Consortium recognizes four proven therapies — which they say work well, but not every one works for everyone. They are enhanced self-care, such as stretching/ yoga, heat, self-massage, and meditation; evidence-based exercise and manual therapy, including therapist-managed exercise and physical therapy; acceptance and commitment therapy aimed at changing your reaction to pain; and duloxetine, an antidepressant.