Spine and Back Pain and Depression and Cognition Helped by Anti-Inflammatory Diet
Inflammation is good and normal…in certain circumstances like defending a part of the body that is injured or infected. Inflammation is not beneficial...like when it hangs around too long. Inflammation is a cellular level event and may be a factor in a variety of chronic diseases: cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, lung, mental, metabolic, neurodegenerative, and more. (1) OrthoIllinois Chiropractic works to lessen inflammation’s impact on the health of our McHenry chiropractic patients suffering with issues like back pain, headache/migraine, depression and even cognitive issues associated with Alzheimer’s. An anti-inflammatory diet plays a role in this effort.
INFLAMMATION LINKED TO BACK PAIN, DEPRESSION, ALZHEIMER’S…
A systematic review and meta-analysis of existing medical studies concerning the role of inflammation and depression reported that a pro-inflammatory diet was related to a bigger risk of depression symptoms and diagnosis compared to those who chose an anti-inflammatory diet. (2) Another study suggested a link between low back pain and pro-inflammatory diets as well. A study of 7346 people described that those reporting the highest inflammatory diet had higher risk of reporting low back pain, too. (3) Links between diet, nutrition and Alzheimer’s disease have been described. The good news is that nutrition was written to be able to regulate the immune system and even modify the neuroinflammatory processes related to Alzheimer’s and age-related cognition issues. (4) These descriptions show just how extensive inflammation can be.
…EVEN MIGRAINE
Migraine as primary headache is projected to affect 14.4% of people and rated as the biggest contributor to disability in people over 50 years of age. Migraine is examined a great deal as to what its mechanism is but still remains somewhat of a mystery. Researchers summarized that many factors are involved: vascular function, trigeminovascular pathway activation, pro-inflammatory and oxidative stats may impact migraine pain. Studies associating migraine to the role of dietary interventions are few, but a recent data search found that Ketogenic diet, modified Atkins diets, and low glycemic diets may better mitochondrial function and energy metabolism, decrease CGRP (calcitonin gene related peptide) level, balance serotonin, and subdue neuroinflammation. Via inflammation and irregular hypothalamic function, obesity and headaches (including migraines) may be linked. The inflammatory link emerged in the published papers. Dietary interventions like the intake of essential fatty acids (decreasing omega-6 and increasing omega-3 which were documented to affect inflammation) were discussed as beneficial. (5) OrthoIllinois Chiropractic understands the power diet and nutrition may have in disease issues like migraine, back pain, depression, and cognition.
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY DIET
OrthoIllinois Chiropractic also knows many of us don’t like the word diet. It often reminds us of things what we can’t have. A good diet allows a lot of good food though. Basic guidelines for an anti-inflammatory diet design incorporate eating eggs, coffee, tea, fish, lean meat, legumes, vegetables, honey and plain dairy like milk, yogurt, hard cheeses, kefir with limited intake of red meat and other dairy and sugar while avoiding canned/processed food, sweetened drinks, and alcohol. (6) We are sure our chiropractic patients can manage this type of diet!
CONTACT OrthoIllinois Chiropractic
Listen to the PODCAST with Dr. James Cox on the Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he shares how inflammation and the immune system interact and how chiropractic care and the Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management may well help.
Schedule your next McHenry chiropractic visit with OrthoIllinois Chiropractic. If inflammation has overstayed its good and normal welcome, we can set up a path toward a more beneficial anti-inflammatory diet.
