having attended a lifting and handling risk assessment course at the health and safety labs, with our course being taught by one of the leading ergonomists in the country, we were told that the best cure for back pain is to keep using it (gently) and yes building up the core muscles will help. the very worst thing is to immobilise it and rest it too much, movement helps it heal and strengthen, we also learnt that for lifting moderate extension of all muscles is better than trying to lift with the back alone, or with the legs alone, all movements should be in the mid range of movement - eg arms slightly flexed, knees slightly bent and back slightly bent, rather than trying to lift with just the legs with the knees at full bend. (all this from one of the leading scientists who perfor the experiments to determine the best methods).
Grendel