WHY YOU SHOULDN’T KEEP YOUR WALLET IN YOUR BACK POCKET

Do you keep, and sit with your wallet in the back pocket? If so, beware. Doing this compresses the skin, muscles and nerves on one side of the buttocks, reducing circulation around the affected area and your legs. This can lead to a condition called sciatica – symptomised by numbness, tingling and/or shooting, and electric-shock like pain down the sciatic nerve.

What happens when you sit on your wallet: One side of the buttocks is raised, resulting in a pelvic tilt (see photo and diagram below) that causes the spine to curve and create an imbalanced posture. This transfers load to one side of the body and causes strain to the back muscles that will initially give you back pain and might later lead to sciatica.

There’s even a term coined for this condition – wallet neuritis, also known as Fat Wallet Syndrome – a condition associated with compression of the sciatic nerve, which has been extensively documented in men.

It is sometimes referred to as credit carditis – a typical wallet contains not only money but is stuffed with all kinds of cards too. Scientific literature has described instances of credit card wallet sciatica, indicating that even relatively small wallets can cause symptoms of wallet neuritis.

Even sitting on a hard surface or carrying objects like a cell phone, golf ball, or handkerchief in the rear pocket can compress the sciatic nerve.

Avoid keeping your wallet (or other hard objects) in your rear pocket. Besides predisposing you to physical pain, sitting on your wallet also damages it and can lead to risks of loss. Always keep your wallet in your front pocket.