When people suffer from back pain, they often look to the usual suspects: heavy lifting, sports injuries, or even sleeping in a bad position. But, the roots of back pain tend to extend much further, reaching many aspects of your lifestyle – including your diet.
Let’s explore how exactly your diet can contribute to back pain, and how to adjust your eating for a healthier, happier spine.
Inflammation: How Does it Affect Back Pain?
One of the strongest links between back pain and dietary factors is inflammation. Your diet can directly impact your body’s inflammatory response. Processed foods, red meat, sugar, and fried foods can throw off the delicate balance of bacteria in your gut. This, in turn, negatively affects your immune system, potentially causing inflammation.
Many forms of back pain are directly impacted by inflammation. For one, inflammation can damage the joints in your spine, along with the rubbery discs that cushion each vertebra. Over time, this damage contributes to painful spinal conditions and diseases.
Back Pain and Diabetes
In high amounts, sugar, saturated fats, trans fats, red meat, processed meat, and processed carbohydrates contribute to diabetes. Diabetes can worsen back pain in a few different ways, including a complication known as diabetic neuropathy.
Diabetic neuropathy is the term used to describe nerve damage triggered by continually raised blood sugar levels. High blood sugar gradually damages nerves throughout the body, leading to pain, numbness, and tingling. Eventually, diabetic neuropathy can cause chronic back pain.
Unfortunately, an estimated 50% of people with diabetes are affected by diabetic neuropathy.
At Hernando Orthopaedic & Spinal Surgery, we don’t just provide comprehensive treatment for spinal conditions and chronic back pain. We also offer lifestyle change assistance with the hCG diet to help you reach and maintain a healthy weight. Contact us today to schedule an appointment!