Sources & citations

Every statistic on this site, with the citation behind it.

Steady Protocols is an educational program, not medical care. The numbers we reference on the landing page come from peer-reviewed research and public health agencies. We list each one here, with the source, so you can read the underlying study yourself.

  1. 80%
    Citation [1]

    80% of adults experience low back pain at some point in their lives.

    National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) (Public health resource, accessed 2026). Low Back Pain Information Page U.S. National Institutes of Health.

    https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/back-pain

    Note: Lifetime prevalence figure. Point-in-time prevalence is lower (roughly 1 in 4 U.S. adults at any moment).

  2. #1
    Citation [2]

    Low back pain has been the leading cause of years lived with disability (YLDs) globally since 1990.

    Hartvigsen J, Hancock MJ, Kongsted A, Louw Q, Ferreira ML, Genevay S, et al. (2018). What low back pain is and why we need to pay attention. The Lancet, 391(10137):2356–2367.

    https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(18)30480-X

    Note: Part of the 2018 Lancet Low Back Pain Series. Synthesises Global Burden of Disease data.

  3. 619M
    Citation [3]

    Low back pain is the single leading cause of disability worldwide, affecting 619 million people. People are living longer, but too often they spend those extra years limited by chronic pain rather than living them fully.

    World Health Organization (WHO) (2023). Low back pain. WHO Fact Sheets.

    https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/low-back-pain

    Note: The 619 million figure is for 2020 and is projected to reach roughly 843 million by 2060. We reference this to show why building a sustainable daily habit around your back matters long before pain becomes chronic.

  4. 8+ hrs
    Citation [4]

    In adults with low daily physical activity, sitting 8+ hours per day is associated with elevated all-cause mortality risk; 60–75 minutes of moderate-intensity activity per day attenuates this association.

    Ekelund U, Steene-Johannessen J, Brown WJ, Fagerland MW, Owen N, Powell KE, et al. (2016). Does physical activity attenuate, or even eliminate, the detrimental association of sitting time with mortality? A harmonised meta-analysis of data from more than 1 million men and women. The Lancet, 388(10051):1302–1310.

    https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)30370-1

    Note: Pooled analysis of 16 studies, 1,005,791 adults, follow-up 2–18 years.

  5. Posture
    Citation [5]

    There is no strong evidence that a single “correct” sitting posture prevents back pain. How often you move matters more than how you hold yourself.

    Slater D, Korakakis V, O'Sullivan P, Nolan D, O'Sullivan K (2019). “Sit Up Straight”: Time to Re-evaluate. Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy, 49(8):562–564.

    https://doi.org/10.2519/jospt.2019.0610

    Note: We cite this to explain why the protocol is built around movement and breaks rather than a posture rule or a particular chair.

  6. Desk work
    Citation [6]

    Among sedentary office workers, more static sitting behaviour is associated with low back pain.

    Bontrup C, Taylor WR, Fliesser M, Visscher R, Green T, Wippert PM, et al. (2019). Low back pain and its relationship with sitting behaviour among sedentary office workers. Applied Ergonomics, 81:102894.

    https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apergo.2019.102894

    Note: Desk-worker-specific evidence behind the movement-break component of the daily plan.

  7. Prevention
    Citation [7]

    Exercise combined with education is the intervention best supported for reducing the risk of recurrent low back pain.

    Steffens D, Maher CG, Pereira LSM, Stevens ML, Oliveira VC, Chapple M, et al. (2016). Prevention of Low Back Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. JAMA Internal Medicine, 176(2):199–208.

    https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2015.7431

    Note: Supports the protocol's framing as a structured routine plus education, run consistently over 30 days, rather than a one-off fix.

How we use research

What we will and won't claim.

We cite epidemiology to describe how common back pain is and why structured habits matter. We do not claim that this program treats, cures, or heals any condition. The cited studies describe population-level patterns, not individual outcomes.

If your pain is severe, recent, trauma-related, radiating into a leg, or accompanied by numbness, weakness, fever, or loss of bladder/bowel control, see a licensed clinician. We tell you the same thing up front: those signs mean this self-directed protocol is not the right starting point.

Spotted a citation that looks wrong or out of date? Email us through the contact page and we'll review.