Walking three times a week to ease back pain almost halves the risk of its recurrence, according to the first study of its kind.

About 800 million people worldwide have low back pain, and seven in 10 who recover experience flare-ups within a year.

Researchers said the findings, published in the Lancet, show walking could have a “profound impact” on the leading cause of disability worldwide.

“You don’t need to be walking 5 or 10km every day to get these benefits,” said Mark Hancock, the study’s senior author and a professor of physiotherapy at Macquarie University in Australia.

“The important thing to remember is to start with short walks then gradually increase the distance and intensity as your fitness increases. Walking is a low-cost, widely accessible and simple exercise that almost anyone can engage in, regardless of geographic location, age or socioeconomic status.”

Hancock said people who walked three to five times a week, for an average of 130 minutes a week, remained pain-free for nearly twice as long compared with those who did not receive any treatment.

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