London - Bad back? You’re not the first. In fact, our ancestors had them more than four million years ago, Cambridge University researchers believe.
Modern causes of the painful problem include tottering along in high heels or spending hours slumped in front of the television.
But the condition dates from an era long before TV screens and comfy sofas.
The claim comes from archaeologist Dr Asier Gomez-Olivencia, who analysed part of a spine from a man aged around 45 who lived some half a million years ago.
A member of the early human species Homo heidelbergensis, his remains were among those of at least two dozen adults and children excavated from the “Pit of Bones” in Atapuerca in northern Spain in recent decades.
The lower section of the man’s spine was painstakingly reconstructed and close examination has revealed it to have been in a bad way.
He suffered from at least three painful problems, including spondylolisthesis, in which a bone in the spine slips out of position, and Baastrup’s disease or “kissing spines”, in which parts of the spine rub against each other. It is likely the damage was caused by the wear and tear of a long life - 45 was a ripe old age for the time - but injuries cannot be ruled out.
In addition, examination of the man’s pelvis shows slight irregularities that could have hastened the development of the spondylolisthesis.
The man, who probably used a walking stick to improve his balance, came from a community of nomadic hunter gatherers - but a painful and damaged spine would have made hunting impossible.
The fact that he survived until his mid-forties suggests others may have taken pity on him and looked after him.
The women of the time also were no strangers to the pain. The shape and size of the pelvis of Homo heidelbergensis women suggests that new mothers suffered tricky and life-threatening deliveries.
But the history of back pain dates back much further, and in a talk at Cambridge on Friday, Dr Gomez-Olivencia will claim the condition was prevalent among our apeman ancestors, 4.4million years ago. - Daily Mail