Nutrition and Back Pain

I hope you had a fabulous holiday season and are back in the swing of things, happy and healthy! 

For this article, I wanted to touch on a subject that is all too prevalent: back pain. If we do not suffer from it ourselves, we surely know someone who experiences back pain to a certain degree, whether it be day to day aches, pains, and stiffness, herniated (also known as ruptured or slipped) disks, spasms, surgeries, and much more. According to Anasuya Batliner, Holistic Nutritionist and Massage Therapist in her article, "Alleviating Back Pain with Diet and Supplements," back pain is one of the most common health problems in the US, with 7 million new cases occurring each year, ranking second amongst reasons people visit the doctor. Wow!

Back pain and subsequent problems can stem from a host of problems, including poor posture, repetitive injury, sudden impact, and obesity which can all put pressure on and break down cartilage. Our back is a network of tissues which work together in protecting the spinal cord. According to Batliner, on its own the spinal cord could barely support 5 pounds, however there are many muscles and ligaments working to give it strength. Our vertebrae are the bones stacked on top of each other, each divided by discs, made of cartilage, which (ideally) allow us to withstand compression. Cartilage is largely made up of water (65-80%), which gives it its pliability. 

Now this is a very basic run-down of the back structure, however when talking about cartilage in particular, here enters the great importance of nutrition! Again according to Batliner, "a nutrient deficiency can cause the nucleus of the disc to lose its ability to hold the water that makes it so compliant. Over time, the nucleus starts getting harder...any unusual body movement can force the nucleus to push its layers out farther or, worse yet, the nucleus can shoot through its layers like the spitting out of a watermelon seed." Ouch.

Ironically, while obesity is rampant in the US, so is malnutrition. People are eating nutrient void foods, and this (along with endless other conditions and disease) can cause and/or exacerbate back pain. The Standard American Diet (SAD), is rich in trans fats, refined sugar and flour, inflammatory substances like coffee, alcohol, tobacco, and pharmaceuticals. All of these can lead to the degeneration of cartilage and bones. Contrary to popular belief, consumption of commercial (non-organic, pasteurized vs. whole, organic, and preferably raw) milk, can actually lead to calcium deficiency and deteriorating bone health. (Visit http://www.raw-milk-facts.com/index.html for more info on this subject). This is for another article, but has to do with commercial milk being fortified with synthesized D vitamins which can interfere with calcium metabolism. The following information is from Dr. Khalsa in his informative book, The Pain Cure.

DIETARY CAUSES OF BACK PAIN:

• Overeating, leading to obesity, demotivation, lack of movement.
• Undereating, leading to low blood sugar which increases our pain sensitivity and nutrient deficiencies.
• Food allergies/sensitivities, leading to inflammation.
• Hormonal dysregulation, leading to chronic pain due to depression, anxiety, lethargy, and stress.

IMPORTANT NUTRIENTS TO CONSIDER (remember organic, grass fed whenever possible):

• Vitamin A found in liver, yams, sweet potatoes, carrots, spinach, collard greens, chard, kale, winter squash.
• Vitamin B complex found in nutritional yeast, nuts/seeds, egg yolks, asparagus.
• Vitamin C found in collard greens, onions, broccoli, mustard greens, kale, parsley, sweet peppers, grapefruit, papaya, lemons, oranges, beet greens, chard.
• Vitamin E found in nuts/seeds (sunflower seeds and almonds are great), spinach, chard, papaya, mustard greens.
• EFA's (essential fatty acids) found in deep sea fish, flax seeds.
• Calcium found in raw milk and dairy, sesame seeds, blackstrap molasses, leafy greens
• Magnesium found in leafy greens, pumpkin seeds, salmon, halibut, almonds.
• Zinc found in oysters, pumpkin seeds, nutritional yeast

If you'd made it with me to this point, thanks!! I hope you've learned a bit about back health, and as always, please come to me with further questions...the more the better!! I'll wrap it up with a quote I recently came across from Nora Gedgaudas in her book Primal Body, Primal Mind:

"No one will ever be more invested in your mental or physical health than you."