In addition to a strong muscles, the diet can contribute to back pain to prevent. What foods and vitamins for a healthy back are particularly important.
Back pain can restrict the everyday life and certainly also ruin your appetite. Who suffers pain acute or chronic back, feel sick and the thought of food stirs up just the anticipation of pleasure and the pleasures of the palate. The correct nutrition can affect back pain in a positive or even prevent it. Conversely, an unhealthy diet can cause but also the opposite and the pain intensify.
If the back is healthy and pain-free, depends on various factors. The body weight: The more weight with each movement, each step needs to be, the more strain is also exerted on the back. A permanent Overload due to excessive weight, for example, can lead to damage of the intervertebral discs and the entire musculoskeletal system.
Obesity is also considered as a trigger for the bone loss of osteoporosis, which can, in turn, have a deformation of the vertebral body and increasing damage to the spine.
About the expert
Tobias Weigl is a physician, pain expert and Director of the medical technology company Bomedus GmbH.
The pillars of a back-friendly diet
The reason that the diet has a positive impact on the health of the Back, is the selection of the right nutrients. They support the bone structure and the muscles and bring preventive effects, so that pain arising in the first place, or always rare. With a balanced, vitamin – and nutrient-rich diet can also the body weight reduce. To include the basic foods that stabilize the spine and promote health, water, dairy products and vegetables.
But not only nutrients, including vitamins, minerals, trace elements and antioxidants play in the ways to a healthy back a Central role. Thus, bones can be strengthened and the lost bone substance is rebuilt, you can make an important contribution.
The importance of water for the back
To drink a lot of, is in any way important for a healthy body and should also be in terms of a stable and pain-free back. No wonder – after all, the body consists of approximately 75 percent water, and also the vertebrae from which the spinal column is constructed, with a water content of around 25 percent is an adequate supply of fluid. Not to mention the intervertebral discs, which have a much higher water content.
What looks from the outside like a stable bone, has a structure reminiscent of a sponge. And also, the intervertebral discs may only have access to the important nutrients of the body, and in consequence of this sponge will provide sufficient liquid.
The spine can support the back of the best, if she has stability and at the same time elasticity. Especially the intervertebral discs benefit from a good fluid balance: In the case of stress, you release the pressure built up of water, it is enriched at discharge from the surrounding tissue back on the eye – in the best case, with valuable nutrients.
Fluids, which are for the back healthy?
- Mineral water,
- unsweetened herbal teas,
- Fruit and vegetable juices, at best, diluted,
- Tap or mineral water with fresh mint, cucumber, lemon or orange slices
Dairy products and the vertebral body
Because they contain large amounts of calcium, apply dairy products as the optimal food for the strengthening of the skeleton. In animal products such as milk, yogurt or cheese rich contained nutrient strengthens the bones and the bone loss disease osteoporosis prevents. Hard cheese has phosphorus, another nutrient that promotes bone building and as well as calcium in a balanced amount in the body should occur.
It is important, and the left in General, in the diet that both nutrients should be in a balanced ratio in the organism, to fulfill their task. Through the consumption of fast food and industrially processed foods but the body accumulates too much phosphorus, and bring the natural balance out of Balance. Problematic is the disproportionate nature of the will, if it persists over a longer period of time – in order to get the required amount of calcium, it is then detached from the bone, which, in turn, leads to the opposite of the desired effect.
What foods contain calcium and phosphorus?
- Low-Fat Milk (Calcium),
- low-fat yogurt, ideally natural yogurt (calcium),
- Cheese-mainly hard cheese, such as Parmesan cheese, Emmental cheese (calcium, phosphorus), in addition, calcium is included in grain products such as brown rice.
Vegetables as a base for a healthy back
Calcium is not only in milk and cereal products, but also in a variety of green vegetables. Other nutrients that support the health of the Back are Magnesium, Vitamin K and boron, which are, for example, in spinach, or arugula. Especially Magnesium makes, similar to calcium and phosphorus, an important contribution to a stable bone structure.
Boron is a nutrient that promotes the absorption and processing of other nutrients. In order to use the effect of green vegetables in the long term as a preventive measure for a pain-free back, should be 2-3 servings in the daily diet.
Which vegetables promote bone formation?
- Green cabbage,
- Spinach,
- Arugula,
- Lettuce,
- Broccoli and lettuce.
Vitamins as a Booster for the back
Vitamins ensure that many of the nutrients will be excreted unused but are absorbed by the body to make use of their positive effects.
You are not involved primarily in the construction and stabilization of the skeleton and musculoskeletal system, but form an important link in the processing chain of nutrients that could not be enriched without the appropriate vitamins in the organism.
What are the foods for the back important vitamins are included?
- Vitamin D (supports the absorption of calcium from the diet): fat-rich fish (salmon, herring, eel), dairy products, eggs, mushrooms. Vitamin D exerts its effect only when the organism is regularly exposed to the sun.
- Vitamin A (promotes bone growth): vegetable (carrots), yellow fruits (peaches, apricots), milk, wheat, liver.
- Vitamin C (collagen in the supporting connective tissue): fruits (Apples, lemons, black currants, sea buckthorn), vegetables (peppers, tomatoes, spinach, Brussels sprouts), herbs (parsley).
- Vitamin K (supports the formation of proteins, the bone structure are needed.): green vegetables, salad
Minerals and trace elements form the framework for the back
Unlike many of the nutrients and vitamins the body itself can not produce minerals. To bring to daily performance and to stay healthy, he is entirely dependent on minerals such as calcium or Magnesium. Minerals are necessary for vitamins and other nutrients can exert their effect in the organism in the first place. The body must obtain them through food, as the calcium in milk products.
A lack of minerals can have serious diseases result. But to find out what are the substances the body needs how much and in which foods these additives are enriched, helps a table for minerals. To be divided the vital substances in two groups: macro elements and trace elements.
Macro-elements needed by the body daily, in an amount of more than 100 milligrams of
- Calcium: Strengthens the blood, bones, teeth, heart and skin. In Milk, Nuts, Almonds. A day 1,000 mg.
- Potassium: Strengthens skin, blood, heart, kidneys, muscles and nerves. In Apricots, Sunflower Seeds, Peaches, Raisins, Peanuts. Daily 2,000 mg.
- Phosphorus: Strengthens bones, teeth, nerves and the brain. In Egg, Milk, Cheese, Poultry. Daily 700 mg.
- Sodium: Strengthens the blood, lymph, muscles, and nervous system. In Saline, Milk, Cheese, Seafood. Daily and 550 mg.
- Magnesium: Strengthens bones, heart, arteries, muscles, teeth and nerves. In honey, green vegetables, spinach, unpeeled peanuts, seafood. Daily 300-350 mg
Trace elements are needed only in smaller quantities, which are mostly well under 100 milligrams of
- Fluoride: Strengthens bones and teeth. In black tea. Daily 3-4 mg.
- Iron: Strengthens nails, teeth, blood, bones, and skin. In Poultry, Egg, Fish, Wheat Germ. Daily 10-15 mg.
- Chrome: Strengthens the blood, circulatory system and muscles. In Corn Oil, Whole Grains, Brewer’s Yeast. Daily 30-100 µg.
- Copper: Strengthens skin, hair, blood, circulatory system and bones. In Nuts, Raisins, Soy, And Seafood. Day, 1.0-1.5 mg.
- Iodine: Strengthens the thyroid gland, hair, nails, skin and teeth. In Iodized Salt, Seafood. Daily up to 200 µg.
- Zinc: Strengthens The Skin, Connective Tissue, Mucosa, And Thymus. In Sunflower Seeds, Milk, Egg, Beef. Daily 7-10 mg.
- Sulfur: Strengthens hair, skin, nerves and nails. Cheese, Fish, Nuts, Egg. Not A Lot Of Recommendation.
- Manganese: Strengthens the brain, mammary glands, nervous system and muscles. In Cereals, Bananas, Nuts, Pineapple, Lettuce. Daily 2-5 mg.
Antioxidants for a lifetime of healthy back
Health complaints may have many causes – one of them are so-called free radicals: they attack the cells in the human body and you can in your function to restrict or completely inoperable. More and more cells are damaged in a body in this way, suffers to the institution itself and loses its ability to function within the organism.
By degeneration of the cellular damage can even lead to the emergence of cancer diseases. Protection against free Radicals, provide antioxidants, which can be supplied to the organism via certain foods.
Antioxidants are contained in vitamins, minerals, trace elements or enzymes. These food groups rich in antioxidants are particularly.
What are antioxidants?
- Vegetables,
- Salads,
- Herbs,
- Fruits,
- Sprouts,
- Wild plants,
- Oilseeds,
- Nuts and natural Oils and fats
Anti-inflammatory substances to reduce back pain
If back pain, play not rarely inflammation a key role. Depending on where the inflammation is seated, there is pain as well as function and movement restrictions. Be triggered, including an unhealthy diet, excessive Stress, sleep deficits or lack of exercise.
To relieve inflammation in the back or in other Parts of the organism or to prevent them, can make a healthy diet an important contribution. In many foods contain natural anti-inflammatory substances, the chronic inflammation can avoid diseases.
In addition to a mainly alkaline diet of vital substances (Vitamin C, copper, Omega-3 fatty acids), pure spring water, Magnesium, or fermented foods. Also onions, garlic, ginger, or turmeric, as well as a variety of fruits, such as cherries, Papaya, and blueberries, bring an anti-inflammatory effect.
What foods should be avoided?
The positive effect achieved by the consumption of the corresponding food to the entire organism and, in total, for the back, can be reinforced by the Omission of harmful food. In addition to fast food and industrially processed foods, especially fat and alcohol, which hinder the direct or indirect influence to build bone or slow down.
Considering the importance of a healthy, robust skeleton for a pain-free back is, it is hardly surprising that alcohol and fat promote not only Obesity, but also for people with normal weight no positive impact.