Gardening is a risky business...

We all know that gardening is good for us keeping us physically active, boosting our mood, and increasing our vitamin D levels. We also know that being outside in nature can be relaxing and the perfect antidote to the stresses of daily life.

While there are the obvious benefits of gardening it could also be seen as a dangerous activity with 87,000 people in the UK going to A & E after having an accident in the garden! *?

Top of the list of dangerous equipment is the lawnmower, with 6,500 accidents reported while flowerpots were the second most dangerous causing 5,300 accidents and 4,300 caused by secateurs & pruners. Falls, cuts, and lifting injuries were some of the other common types of accidents reported.

While I can't help you with all of the hazards you will face in the garden this newsletter is dedicated to helping you avoid muscle and joint-related problems.

* The figures are based on the Department of Trade and Industry’s Home Accident Surveillance System Report 2002. This is the most up-to-date report I could find so things may have improved (or got worse! ??)

While not stepping on a rake may seem obvious it does happen, usually with hilarious consequences in a cartoon or comedy sketch but it can mean a trip to A & E in real life!?

In addition to avoiding rakes, other injuries to avoid include eye problems caused by flying debris, hand injuries due to razor-sharp secateurs and mowers, and foot injuries due to stepping on pointy things.

Yes, gardening can be dangerous and the obvious things to do to reduce the risks are to put your tools away (especially rakes), wear eye protection, sensible footwear, and gardening gloves.

As an osteopath, the gardening problems that I see are the ones that don't generally require a trip to A & E but may involve a call to your GP (or your friendly neighbourhood osteopath ??) and include:

Gardeners’ back which is another name for low back pain caused by digging, raking, and lifting heavy objects.

Weeder’s wrist where wrist pain and stiffness occur due to over-zealous weeding or overuse of the garden shears.

Pruner’s neck with neck and shoulder pain caused by pruning those high branches on hedges and trees.

If any of these problems sound familiar this advice will help to keep you pain-free:

• Try to begin your gardening session with a warm-up routine by taking a brisk 5-minute walk to help get your heart pumping and warm up your muscles ready for all that weeding, digging, and potting out.
• Set a 10 – 15 minute time limit on any activity to help spread the load on your muscles and joints as this will make a repetitive strain problem much less likely. Whenever possible change the hand/ arm you are using for a particular job as this will also help reduce any problems.
• Listen to your body and if you start to feel some discomfort while carrying out a task don’t ignore it, slow down or take a break.
• When you have to lift something heavy make sure you bend at your hips and knees so you use your powerful leg muscles. Contrary to popular belief this isn't to protect your back which is a strong, stable, flexible unit it's just that the more muscles you use the more work you can do (obviously still taking regular breaks). To reduce the risk even more you can always ask someone to help with any lifting or carrying to share the load.
• Keep hydrated and drink plenty of water to replace any fluids that you might lose due to sweating.
• When planting or weeding use a foam-padded kneeler or knee pads to avoid developing knee pain.

I hope that you have found this information helpful and that your future gardening efforts are fun and injury-free. If you develop aches and pains during or after your gardening endeavors they should resolve in a few days but if they don't give me a call on 07515 014308 or email [email protected] for some advice.

Feel free to share this newsletter with anyone you think might be interested, especially if they are in pain and could benefit from a chat with their friendly neighborhood osteopath.

Thanks again for reading and take care until next time.

Bob Allen