All the explanations and recommendations are based on published research and clinical experiences. You can even click on the references and it will take you to the original abstracts.

If you don’t want to read the scientific explanations documenting why the recommendations are effective, click here on summary which lists an easy way to implement the information.

Low back and neck pain

Low back and neck pain can have multiple causes and can involve the intervertebral joints (facet joints) which are spinal joints, the intervertebral disc which is the cushion between the vertebras, as well as involvement of ligaments, muscles, bones and nerves. Inflammation is also usually involved.

When the inflammatory marker hs-CRP was measured in patients with lumbar disc herniation, it was found that the patients with higher hs-CRP measured before surgery showed a poorer recovery compared with patients with lower hs-CRP (Sugimori K, et al. 2003). This means that low grade systemic inflammation interferes with healing.

Proinflammatory cytokines can directly influence skeletal muscle contractility. Especially the proinflammatory tumor necrosis factor-alpha, and interleukin-1 and 6 inhibit muscle amino acid transport and stimulate protein degradation (Zoico E, Roubenoff R. 2002, Hasselgren PO, Fischer JE. 1999). This means that chronic inflammation interferes with the transportation of amino acids, which are necessary to build and regenerate muscle tissue. Muscles are made up of amino acids, which are linked together to make the protein in muscles, but inflammation may stimulate a breakdown of protein.

Recommendations

Follow a low glycemic index diet, high in nutrients with the right ratio of omega 3 or 6 fatty acids.

This will help you reduce inflammation, increase insulin sensitivity and subsequently help reduce pain and increase your energy.

Research has documented that immune responses to food, food allergies will increase inflammatory markers like CRP, TNF-alpha and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (Karatay S, et al. 2004, Hvatum M, et al. 2006, Hafstrom I, et al. 2001). The same research shows that these inflammatory markers and pain decrease when avoiding the allergy triggering foods.

For easy implementation, you will find explanations and recommendations with references to research in the book “Effective Nutrition for Effective Healing.” The book also includes a lot of easy to make recipes, click here.



For additional specific nutritional support, alpha lipoic acid is recommended. Lipoic acid has been documented to improve peripheral neuropathic pain (sciatica) and deficits associated with a herniated disc as measured by electromyography and symptoms scores (Memeo A, Loiero M. 2008). For the correct dosage and easy implementation, click here.

All the important musculoskeletal tissues intervertebral discs, joints cartilage, ligaments, bone and tendons are made up of the same building blocks. Collagen and proteoglycan are common factors.

For specific nutritional support of these tissues and easy implementation, click here.

Omega 6 fatty acids are involved in the production of arachidonic acid, a precursor of prostaglandins and leukotrienes which are inflammatory and pain producing agents. Most people ingest too much omega 6 compared to omega 3 fatty acids.

Ingesting omega 3 fish oils results in a partial replacement of arachidonic acid in the cell membranes by EPA, a component of omega 3 fat (Calder PC. 2003). This has a beneficial anti-inflammatory effect. In addition, omega 3 fatty acids have shown to inhibit the inflammatory cytokines IL-1 (interleukin-1), IL-2 (interleukin-2) and TNF-alpha (tumor necrosis factor-alpha) (Adam O, 2003, Kang JX, Weylandt KH. 2008, Rennie KL, et al. 2003).

For easy implementation, click here.

 

Summary

Low back and neck pain

Follow the dietary recommendations in the book “Effective Nutrition for Effective Healing.”

Flax seeds – It is recommended to take 2 tablespoons of flax seeds and grind them up in a coffee grinder. You can mix them in a glass of water and drink it down before you eat breakfast and you can also do the same thing before dinner. You can also sprinkle the ground up seeds on food if you prefer. Start taking it once daily to be sure you don’t have an allergic reaction to it, and then increase it to twice daily.

Lipoic Acid – Take 2 tablets at one time in the morning.

BMJ – Take 4 capsules twice daily.

The BMJ is the most important formula for support of the musculoskeletal system and should be your first choice.

Better Fish Oil – Take 1 capsule 3 times daily.

Take all supplements with food.

 

References:

Adam O. Dietary fatty acids and immune reactions in synovial tissue. Eur J Med Res. 2003 Aug 20;8(8):381-7.

Calder PC. N-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and inflammation: from molecular biology to the clinic. Lipids. 2003 Apr;38(4)343-52.

Hafstrom I, Ringertz B, Spangberg A, von Zweigbergk L, Brannemark S, Nylander I, Ronnelid K, Laasonen L, Klareskog L. A vegan diet free of gluten improves the signs and symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis: the effects on arthritis co rrelate with a reduction in antibodies to food antigens. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2001 Oct;40(10):1175-9.

Hasselgren PO, Fischer JE. Counter-regulatory hormones and mechanisms in amino acid metabolism with special reference to the catabolic response in skeletal muscle. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care . 1999 Jan;2(1):9-14. Review.

Hvatum M, Kanerud L, Hallgren R, Brantzaeg P. The gut-joint axis: cross reactive food antibodies in rheumatoid arthritis. Gut. 2006 Sep;55(9):1240-7. Epub 2006 Feb 16.

Kang JX, Weylandt KH. Modulation of inflammatory cytokines by omega-3 fatty acids. Subcell Biochem . 2008;49:133-43. Review.

Karatay S, Erdem T, Yildirim K, Melikoglu MA, Ugur M, Cakir E, Akcay F, Senel K. The effect of individualized diet chanllenges co nsisting of allergic foods on TNF-alpha and IL-1beta levels in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2004 Nov;43(11):1429-33. Epub 2004 Aug 10.

Memeo A, Loiero M. Thioctic acid and acetyl-L-carnitine in the treatment of sciatic pain caused by a herniated disc: a randomized, double-blind, comparative study. Clin Drug Investig . 2008;28(8):495-500.

Rennie KL, Hughes J, Lang R, Jebb SA. Nutritional management of rheumatoid arthritis: a review of the evidence. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2003 Apr;16(2):97-109.

Sugimori K, Kawaguchi Y, Morita M, Kitajima I, Kimura T. High-sensitivity analysis of serum C-reactive protein in young patients with lumbar disc herniation. J Bone Joint Surg Br . 2003 Nov;85(8):1151-4.

Zoico E, Roubenoff R. The role of cytokines in regulating protein metabolism and muscle function. Nutr Rev . 2002 Feb;60(2):39-51. Review.

 

 

 

 

The information on this website is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professional. The information and products on this website are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.