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Taking paracetamol has no effect on lower back pain despite being the treatment most widely recommended by doctors, according to a study, The Daily Mail reported.

Paracetamol is the first-line treatment for GPs dealing with acute attacks of the most common form of back pain, while the NHS Choices websites advises patients to take it.

But a major trial shows the painkiller does not help sufferers recover more quickly, reduce their pain levels or improve their sleep or quality of life.

The research suggests advice and reassurance can do as much good for back pain patients as regular doses of paracetamol.

This could include advising patients to rest and to improve their posture and reassuring them that they will get better.

Lower back pain is thought to affect two in five people at some point in their lives, being triggered by bad posture, bending awkwardly or lifting incorrectly. In many cases it gets better within 12 weeks, with sufferers taking painkillers and keeping mobile.