Melbourne, Oct 24 (ANI): Canadian researchers have linked smoking to chronic lower back pain.

In the study, boffins identified a higher rate of chronic lower back pain among people who smoke every day, reports News.com.au.

According to Professor Michael Cousins, the research suggests that smoking interferes with pain transmitters, causing osteoporosis.

The condition resulted in chronic lower back pain which could also trigger a "downward spiral" in a person's life, he warned.

"Chronic pain is now regarded as a disease in its own right," said Prof Cousins, who is director of the Pain Management Research Institute at Sydney's Royal North Shore Hospital.

"Patients with it rapidly progress into a downward spiral of physical, psychological and environmental changes, resulting in major deterioration of all life activities, in their work, family and community roles," he added.

Prof Cousins commented on the study published in the journal Clinical and Investigative Medicine, and included more than 73,000 people aged 20-59. (ANI)