Turns out dancing - a la Miley Cyrus' provocative twerking at the August MTV Video Music Awards - could actually help prevent back pain.

Miley Cyrus may be on to something.

The pop star went from playing family-friendly Hannah Montana to bearing her belly-button on-stage, causing a scene when she twerked at the MTV Video Music Awards. But while Cyrus may no longer be fit for the Disney Channel, she may be a good example for people who want to prevent chronic back pain.

People with acute back pain may not want to emulate the wannabe bad girl by twerking, which is a rigorous dance in which the dancer squats and shakes her buttocks up and down rapidly. There’s a lot of hip thrusting and bobbing involved, too. 

“I don’t know that we have good research evidence on the beneficial or harmful effects of twerking," said Rick Deyo, MD, a physician in the Department of Family Medicine at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland. “But it is a form of dancing, and dancing is a good thing."

For those who don’t already experience acute back pain and are in good physical condition overall, movement like that involved in twerking can help keep joints limber and strengthens muscles, which may aid in the prevention of future injuries.

Less strenuous dancing may even be immediately helpful for those who have minor back issues. Getting hot and sweaty during a workout pumps blood quickly throughout the body, Dr. Deyo said, which helps circulate anti-pain substances like endorphins throughout the body.

“We can theorize that twerking might be beneficial," he said.

Do the Work Before You Twerk

Rey Bosita, MD, a spine surgeon at the Texas Back Institute in Plano said he sees twerking as a fun way to stay fit.

“There are a lot of fun workouts nowadays,” Dr. Bosita said. “Women take pole dancing classes. Regardless of how provocative that may seem, people are getting back to the basics of exercise.”

But if you’ve heard of twerking, you may also have heard of "twerking fails." YouTube is full of videos in which people have hurt themselves in twerking-related accidents. One woman cracked a glass pane twerking, while another broke a TV.

To stay safe while twerking out, follow the basic principles of exercise. Don’t try to do too much too soon. That means if you want to twerk upside down like these girls we found on YouTube, you need to work up to it first.

“I would definitely stretch before I twerk because you don’t want to pull something,” Bosita added. “You’d want to limber up, and stretch out the quads and the hamstrings.”

Safe Twerking

Despite the possible consequences, neither Deyo nor Bosita would discourage people from twerking right side up or upside down.

With one exception. “Certainly, if you’re drunk, you shouldn’t be doing that,” Bosita said. “Always practice safe twerking.”

Photo Credit: Al Powers/Powers Imagery/Invision/AP