If you are carrying around excess weight, then you might be more susceptible to chronic pain—particularly in the lower back and knees. However, starting a weight loss plain could actually reduce your pain. As you are searching high and low for a pain management solution, your best bet might be to start considering the benefits of weight management in Beverly Hills.

The Causes of Chronic Pain

Chronic pain develops for a plethora of reasons. Personal factors like posture, sleeping habits and work history may play a role in why you are experiencing pain. Congenital conditions predispose some people to experience back pain due to the curvature of their spine, while others develop lifelong discomfort after a traumatic injury.

But for others, the cause of chronic pain isn’t so hard to pin down. If you are overweight or obese, then those excess pounds may be the reason you are experiencing so much pain.

Back Pain and Your Weight:

Chronic lower back pain is the second leading cause of disability in the United States. The number of Americans battling with back pain has steadily been on the rise over the past decade, staying in step with the rise of obese and overweight individuals in the United States.

Losing weight can relieve the amount of stress on your spine during regular movements and can also help to improve your posture and make it easier for you to work out—all factors that will often help to improve your back pain as you lose weight.

Knee Pain and Your Weight:

Knee pain is one of the most common types of chronic pain and researchers may have figured out why. Those who put on weight are more likely to develop knee pain than are those who stay the same weight or lose weight.

An estimated 18 percent of the adult population suffers from knee pain, and with two-thirds of the American population struggling with weight gain there is no question as to why the injury is becoming a popular nuisance. After evaluating the knee pain of close to 200 adults, researchers found that those who had gained weight experienced greater discomfort overtime. Researchers were able to correlate a 1.9 point increase in pain on a 500 point scale per every kilogram of weight that was gained.

However, participants in this study who lost weight reported an average pain reduction of 22.4 points. Though the results of this study were purely correlational, it does point towards the fact that losing weight could significantly reduce the amount of pain in your knees.

A weight loss plan might not be enough to eliminate your chronic pain, but it could be a healthy start. Combining a weight management program with a pain management program might be just the trick you need to overcome your chronic pain once and for all.