I watched this lady cut grass from a marshy ground. She would stand straight every minute or so. I wondered whether her back is hurting. The burden of gathering the grass to feed the cattle falls on her which is just one indication of the multitasking women are used to.
I saw her bend forward with her back when she had to cut grass, rather than bend by flexing the knees, which worried me.
I suffered a near prolapse disc when I was in the third year in medical school, while lifting a trunk of books. The acute pain I suffered then, was an indication that something was wrong in the back. The orthopaedic professor after seeing the X-ray of the back indicated that I ought to be careful with my back. One practice that he imposed on me at that time was to use my knees while bending and coming up straight.
It might be even more important for women with all the demands on their back, by long hours of standing while cooking, lifting small or larger weights, carrying babies on their sides, etc.
What followed was also a matter of concern. Her husband appeared shortly to carry the head load of grass to their home, which was half a kilometre away. The husband carried the larger bundle while the woman carried a smaller head weight!
With osteoporosis associated with ageing or vitamin deficiency, the incidence of backache is common among women in their forties!
One senior colleague in the place I worked earlier, was an advocate to prevent and treat 'chronic backache' in women. One initiative was to reach women to do exercises to strengthen their abdominal and spinal muscles !
Multitasking is the way of life, but it adds new demands on our body!
M.C.Mathew(text and photo)
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