- Anatomy of The Spine
- Back Pain in Children
- Caring for your Spine
- Emerging Spinecare Trends
- Evaluation of Spinal Disorders
- Exercise and The Spine
- Intervention - Spinal Disorders
- Intervertebral Disc
- Non Surgical Options
- Nutrition and Spinecare
- Options for Spine Treatments
- Pregnancy and Back Pain
- Prevalence of Spine Disorders
- Sleep and the Spine
- Spinecare Introduction
- Spinehealth and Disease
- Surgical Interventions
- Treatment with Medications
- Understanding Back Pain
Spinecare Topics
Caring for your Spine
The Role of Diet and Weight
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The Role of Diet and Weight
Recovery from back surgery is strongly influenced by a patient’s body mass index (BMI) and their body weight. Obese patients have a higher risk of complications and infections from surgery than non-obese patients. They are also exposed to greater risk of scar tissue (fibrosis) development due to the stress placed upon post-operative inflammed areas. Overweight or obese patients should consider losing weight prior to any elective (non-emergency) back surgery to help reduce the risk for complications and future back problems.
Exercise Helps with Weight Loss and Back Pain
Achievement and maintenance of healthy weight requires the development of the habit of regular exercise. There are many reasons why overweight individuals avoid regular exercise. These reasons include, general fatigue, exertional fatigue, shortness of breath, back pain, extremity joint pain, foot pain, limited flexibility, poor self-imaging and not wanting to be seen exercising because they are “Fat�. This is a vicious cycle that needs to be broken or it progresses and becomes worse.
Many patients with chronic or recurrent back problems believe that they should avoid all exercise and many of the activities of daily living in order to protect their back from further compromise and pain. Inactivity and lack of exercise can contribute to progressive deterioration of a back problem. Inactivity can lead to muscle atrophy and weakness that alters posture and reduces stability of spinal motion segments.
Decreased physical activity also reduces spinal flexibility that will contribute to greater stress on the tissues of the spine. Regular physical movement helps to deliver nutrients to the tissues of the spine and also helps to increase the removal of metabolic by products (waste products).
Fatness and Functional Failure:
A high percent body fat is considered to be one of the major killers in America today. It is also considered one of the leading causes for stress on weight bearing joints including the spine. Obesity increases the risk for degenerative arthritis. The use of height and weight charts to determine optimum weight or for screening for obesity can be inaccurate. These charts do not take into consideration the actual composition of the body. Body composition is defined as the proportion of bone, muscle, fat, and organ weight of the body. The average male 18-20 years of age has between 12% and 15% fat. A woman of the same age may vary between 26% and 30% fat. Middle age individuals tend to have a higher percentage of body fat than younger individuals. The aging process involves continuous changes in body composition.
Exercise Helps with Weight Loss and Back Pain
Achievement and maintenance of healthy weight requires the development of the habit of regular exercise. There are many reasons why overweight individuals avoid regular exercise. These reasons include, general fatigue, exertional fatigue, shortness of breath, back pain, extremity joint pain, foot pain, limited flexibility, poor self-imaging and not wanting to be seen exercising because they are “Fat�. This is a vicious cycle that needs to be broken or it progresses and becomes worse.
Many patients with chronic or recurrent back problems believe that they should avoid all exercise and many of the activities of daily living in order to protect their back from further compromise and pain. Inactivity and lack of exercise can contribute to progressive deterioration of a back problem. Inactivity can lead to muscle atrophy and weakness that alters posture and reduces stability of spinal motion segments.
Decreased physical activity also reduces spinal flexibility that will contribute to greater stress on the tissues of the spine. Regular physical movement helps to deliver nutrients to the tissues of the spine and also helps to increase the removal of metabolic by products (waste products).
Fatness and Functional Failure:
A high percent body fat is considered to be one of the major killers in America today. It is also considered one of the leading causes for stress on weight bearing joints including the spine. Obesity increases the risk for degenerative arthritis. The use of height and weight charts to determine optimum weight or for screening for obesity can be inaccurate. These charts do not take into consideration the actual composition of the body. Body composition is defined as the proportion of bone, muscle, fat, and organ weight of the body. The average male 18-20 years of age has between 12% and 15% fat. A woman of the same age may vary between 26% and 30% fat. Middle age individuals tend to have a higher percentage of body fat than younger individuals. The aging process involves continuous changes in body composition.
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