Put Your Wallet On A Much-Needed Diet

Unless you’re carrying an eye-popping amount of cash in your wallet, no one’s going to look at your fat man-purse with admiration. The sight of it is plain ugly, and the impression it advertises is similar to the one given by an unhygienic or untidy person. On the other hand, a slim wallet flaunts neatness in exuberance.

Cosmetic downsides aside, there’s the usually unknown health hazard of carrying your thick case of leather. There’s a direct connection between keeping a fat wallet in your back pocket and back ache (and in several cases, sciatica).

Popular culture has directed halogen lights over this issue, like in an episode of Seinfeld, where George Costanza suffers from a back injury as a result of using an enormously fat wallet.

In 1966, the New England Journal of Medicine became the first mediator to convey this issue to the public. Credit-Carditis was a term made to describe this problem as credit cards were becoming common and hence were finding their way into wallets, thus fattening the latter.

Since then, there’s been a fair amount of research conducted. Fat wallet syndrome and wallet sciatica have become the common terms today to describe this pain. There’s been an increase in reports and diagnosis of sciatica caused by keeping fat wallets in the back pocket and sitting on them.

The piriformis muscle situated in the buttocks is pressed on by the wallet. The sciatic nerve, running down the leg, is connected to this muscle. Firstly, the posture is imbalanced and the buttock which is raised by your wallet directs more weight on itself causing strain on the piriformis muscle and pressing of the sciatic nerve. Over a period of time this develops into severe pain in the area and in the back.

What can you do to avoid this self-inflicted pain?

• Spare some time to empty your wallet and carefully segregate the useless receipts from the important ones. Also remove any material which has no importance in your daily routine or isn’t required for the time being. Carry minimum because less is more.
• Now, as you have trimmed your wallet’s size, you have now made it possible to be carried in your front pocket or your coat’s inner pocket. Anyway back pockets are never safe from mugging.
• Buy a BiFold wallet as it organizes and places the weight of your cards and bills evenly. BigSkinny Bifolds are recommended as they have many pockets of various sizes.
• Clean junk every weekend as throughout the course of your busy week, scrutinizing your wallet’s content isn’t a logically possible thing to do.

Remember, health is wealth. And if your wealth is ruining your health, then you will lose both gradually.