No More Aching Back

235 Pages·2007·13.63 MB·English

No More
Aching Back
Leon Root, M.D.
ALSO BY LEON ROOT, M.D.
Ok, My Aching Back
by Leon Root, M.D., and Thomas Kiernan
Tennis Elbow, Trick Knee and Other
Miseries of the Weekend Athlete
by Leon Root, M.D., and Thomas Kiernan
No More Aching Back
NO MORE
ACHING
BACK
Dr. Root's New
Fifteen~Minute~a~Day Program
for a Healthy Back
LEON ROOT, M.D.
Illustrations by Elisa Root
Ward Books New York 1990
Copyright © 1990 by Leon Root, M.D.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright
Conventions. Published in the United States by Villard Books, a division
ofRandom House, Inc., NewYork, and simultaneously in Canada by
Random House ofCanada Limited, Toronto.
Villard Books is a registered trademark ofRandom House, Inc.
Library ofCongress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Root, Leon.
No more achingback: Dr. Root's new 15-minute-a-day program for
a healthyback/by Leon Root.
p. cm.
ISBN 0-394-58794-4
1. Backache—Popularworks. 2. Backache—Exercise therapy.
3. Backache—Prevention. I. Title.
RD771.B217R66 1990
617.5'64—dc2o
90-12090
98765432
First Edition
To all my patients,
whose experiences are thefoundation
of this book
Preface
Science is the search for knowledge. This eternal quest to
advance the betterment of mankind does not stop with a new
discovery or method, but rather increases the drive for further
improvements in the way we do things. It is especially true
with medicine, the science most intimately concerned with
the functioning of the human body. Doctors and researchers
are constantly updatingthe body ofknowledge concerned with
making life more comfortable and enjoyable for us. This is
equally true for the area ofthe body, the back, that continues
to be a source ofmajor discomfortto millions ofsufferers each
year. This book updates my previous writings and contains the
most recent and comprehensive information available on the
diagnosis and treatment ofback problems.
Acknowledgments
This book has been a labor of love supported and enhanced
by my family. My wife Paula and our children, Matthew and
Lili, allowed me time to write on weekends, time which I
usually reserve for them. Their love and good humor made
work pleasurable and the results worthwhile.
I am endebted to my brother, Norman Root, who spent
numerous hours reviewing my manuscript. His advice and
counsel were invaluable in the organization of the material
and in making certain that my thoughts and concepts would
be clear to you, my readers. Since our childhood days, he has
inspired me to new levels ofachievement.
The wonderful illustrations were done by my niece, Elisa
Root. I took full advantage ofher artistic talents and excellent
concepts to provide you with illustrations that would help to
explain my message and the exercise programs.
There are two people outside my family whom I also wish
to acknowledge and thank: my editor, Diane Reverand, whose
encouragement and sage advice made the whole process
xii • Acknowledgments
enjoyable and educational, and my loyal and industrious sec
retary, Norma Bonaiuto, who worked all those extra early-
morning and late-night hours typing the manuscript over and
over again.
Without the help and support of these wonderful people,
this book would not have been possible.
Leon Root
Contents
Preface ix
Acknowledgments xi
List of Illustrations xv
List of Exercises xvii
Introduction xix
1. The Office Visit 3
2. How Your Back Works 16
3. What Can Go Wrong with Your Back 31
4. Tests and Treatment 87
5. Everyday Living and Your Back 115
6. Back Pain in Children 126
7. Sex and the Bad Back 133