THE BODY'S SECRET ENEMY

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For new readers, you can check our previous post. For weekly readers, did you remember to support your back during the week?

If yes, kudos to you. If no, it’s not too late to start out.

Today’s diet is something similar – something we are guilty of.

Sit back. Relax. Let the reading begin…

There is a wear and tear principle – that after a period, items we purchase get old and need replacement.

Remember the spare tyre our fathers changed to when the tyre burst on the road trip? The clothes or shoes our mothers changed for us when she started seeing our toes peep out? Or the phones, TVs, blenders that suddenly gave up the ghost – even after several repairs?

Yes we do!

They are subjects to the wear and tear principle.

In the law world, it refers to the law governing the landlord and tenant to limit damage to landlord’s property. Likewise in the Medical world; although its damages could be severe and life threatening. 


What does the Medical world say about the wear and tear principle?

In the medical world, the wear and tear principle is likened to the wear and tear theory of aging – that aging can cause progressive damage to cells and body systems after a period. Different scholars have stated that there are several theories of aging; and wear and tear theory is one of the sub-theories of error theories of aging – that aging occurs due to a series of ‘accidents’ and not due to being programmed. Wear and tear theory of aging could be as a result of many things such as exposure to radiation, alteration of the genes, loss of cells (such as nerve cells in the brain), and finally - something we call microtrauma. 

(Check this out for more information)

Microtraumas: one of the body's secret enemy 

Microtraumas are unavoidable trauma that we experience every day. They are injuries resulting from repeated stress to the tissues, muscles or joints. This repeated injury can occur in any joint of the body – thereby leading to pain or limiting the range of motion of the joint.

Let's break it down…

We get a remote job that requires us to use our laptops continuously. We sit in a 4 hours class with no good back support. We lie on our beds for hours with our fingers scrolling through Instagram or Tiktok or Facebook. We stand for long hours with no support. Or simply, we remain in a position for long. 


Those positions we maintain for a long time makes us prone to microtrauma, which could lead to taut muscles - that eventually limits our movement or cause pain. Just like we discussed in our previous post, we get so engrossed in these activities that we forget we have spent hours in that positions - guilty?

How can we tell when we have a microtrauma injury?

Take a moment to reflect on this - how long do you maintain a position? Your response would help you know the part prone to microtrauma injury. However while we must note that every joint in the body is prone to microtrauma; we must also know that some specific joints are commonly affected: the shoulders, low backs, wrists, fingers, feet, knees and hips.


Now that we have a better understanding, we must be more conscious of how our body operates and adjust our lifestyles – to improve our quality of life. Every human would go through the wear and tear theory of aging, but we can go through it with lesser trauma.

At The Physio Diary, we are not against working or being diligent, we aim to help people perform activities of daily living with less strain or stress on their bodies.

Therefore, what do we advise?

Resign? Employ someone? Get a robot?

Resign? Definitely not!

Employ someone? It does not change anything.

Get a robot? Perhaps; but does not change anything.

These are possible options we might think of to alleviate the stress, but with microtraumas, we have to understand that it depends on how long we maintain a particular position. If we choose to resign? What is our next plan? To sit down all day? Sitting all day would also lead to an injury. Same as employing an individual or getting a robot. 

While the body needs to rest, the body also needs to work. 

Our advise is that in carrying out our daily activities of living, 

  • we do not remain in a position for more than 30 minutes continuously.

This is because in repeatedly maintaining a position, microtraumas set in. 

It is understandable that our profession might not allow give us an opportunity to change position, but when we eventually get those breaks,

  • stand up, stretch the body part that was working actively. Then, continue your work. 

Another way to avoid or relieve microtraumas is to:

  • Maintain a correct position (for your back and neck)

The aforementioned points are simple, and would aid us a lot in avoiding or minimising effects of microtraumas that could eventually lead to macrotraumas. However, if after seven days of actively engaging in these activities, there is no significant improvement, send a mail to thephysiodiary@gmail.com 


In conclusion, your health is our priority and adhering to the aforementioned solutions would help to prevent microtrauma or reduce its effect - thereby preventing a long term damage. 

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