Nutrition and Back Pain: What to Know

Your diet is one crucial area that needs careful planning if you are struggling with back pain or you’re simply looking to prevent it. Nutrition overall impacts the body’s function and ability to heal and recover. All interventional pain management therapies encourage patients to eat right to give their bodies a better chance. Learn here how to fight back pain with food.

The Major Nutrients Your Back Needs

The spinal cord requires all six classes of food for optimal health. But it needs vitamins and minerals to prevent injury and ensure cellular integrity. Zinc, and vitamins A, E, and C, are necessary. You also need to take in foods that provide free radicals in the body to help prevent and fight certain diseases.

Best Foods for Back Pain Recovery and Management

1. Vitamin A-rich foods such as sweet potatoes, carrots, and pumpkins. These foods help the skin and are excellent for managing pressure sores nutritionally.
2. Nuts, such as walnuts, cashew, almonds, and peanuts, are excellent sources of healthy fat, fiber, protein, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and vitamin E, all beneficial to spinal and back health. Phosphorus is an essential chemical in the formation and strengthening of bones.
3. Other foods, such as berries, proteins, fish, dark leafy vegetables, and dairy products, are also excellent for recovery during interventional pain management.

Weight Management

Weight management is another nutrition-related need for a healthy back. Losing weight may significantly improve your back pain if you are overweight (a risk factor). Maintaining a balance between losing weight and eating enough to get nutrients requires professional advice. It is best to consult your nutritionist, pain doctor, or dietician for dietary clarity.

Food-Drug Interactions

Certain foods may interact with drugs prescribed for your back pain and its causes. For example, calcium-rich foods, dairy foods, and alcohol are known chemicals that interact with antibiotics, stimulants, and other drugs. During interventional pain management, your doctor will provide specific instructions about the foods to avoid for the best results.