Ralph Pearce Farm work takes a toll Small changes can help farmers reduce pain from vibration, prolonged sitting, and repetitive tasks Frequent movement, proper lifting techniques, healthy habits, and early treatment can help farmers prevent injuries and protect their long-term health. Farming has long been recognized as one of Canada’s most dangerous occupations in terms of fatalities and injuries. Yet its role in causing physical ailments affecting a person’s back, neck, shoulders, hips, and knees is gaining more attention across the industry. Tradition in agriculture often overrules concerns about the rigours of hoisting seed bags and jugs of chemical products, moving augers, making repairs, and sitting for long hours in a tractor, sprayer, or combine cab. The justification is simple and emphatic: “There’s work to be done” — or words to that effect. Unfortunately, that doesn’t undo the damage or long-term suffering many growers experience. Thankfully, medical and agricultural research is ongoing, expanding knowledge and helping to effect change. In 2012, the American Journal of Industrial Medicine published a study on the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) among farmers, which found that the “lifetime prevalence of any form of MSD among farmers was 90.6 per cent.” In 2022, the University of Saskatchewan undertook its own study, “Take a Break from the Shake,” to evaluate controlled vibration exposure and rest-break interventions. A TOUGH ASK It’s difficult to get farmers to listen to their bodies, especially when they’re focused on farm conditions and everything that demands their attention each day: planting, tending, or harvesting crops, and feeding, monitoring, and preparing livestock and poultry for transport. The temptation to overlook or ignore the many aches and pains they endure is part of the profession, like scraped knuckles or mud-caked boots. ONTARIO GRAIN FARMER WELLNESS
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