My Diet Can Affect My Spine?
Posted: Jun 16 2010 Topic: Chiropractic
Absolutely!
I recently had a woman come into my office with far less tension in her body and fewer misalignments than normal. This particular patient has been a regular, bi-weekly patient for quite some time. She has had a history of episodic back and neck discomfort that has been ongoing for years and there are often several areas in her spine that are not functioning optimally. Certain areas are stiff and tender to palpation and I will often need to do several adjustments to re-align her spine and balance her nervous system.
On this particular occasion things were different. I asked her about any changes that she had made recently that could account for what I was feeling and she explained that she had been on a dietary cleanse for the past week. Suddenly it all made sense and was just as I had suspected.
Misalignments of the spine often referred to as “subluxations” by Chiropractors are caused by stress on the body. When you experience stress beyond the body’s ability to deal with it the nervous system becomes overwhelmed and the spine is affected. The spine seizes up between spinal segments and tissues become tense. This is due to the interaction between the nervous system and the spine. We often overlook two major categories of stress that the body is subjected to on a daily basis – chemical stress and emotional stress. We all know that poor posture, accidents, falls and other physical stresses affect the body but few of us are aware that what we eat, the environments that we are exposed to, the range of feelings that we have, etc. impact our spines just as much if not more. When this particular patient was cleansing through her diet she was eliminating foods that are chemically toxic to her body enabling her to physiologically function as her body was designed to. Decreasing the chemical load on her body decreased the stress on her nervous system and thus decreased the number of subluxations in her spine.
If you suffer from chronic misalignments of your spine and/or other health problems and are trying to get to the bottom of it consider the different types of stress that you could be experiencing. Here are some examples in order of most to least detrimental to your body and health (in my opinion):
Emotional Stress:
- job dissatisfaction, relationship issues, financial issues, lack of personal time, unresolved hurts, poor self-esteem, loss of a loved one, etc.
Chemical Stress:
- poor nutrition (including eating junk food), alcohol, smoking, dehydration, toxins in your home, work and/or outdoor environment (i.e. off-gassing from furniture, carpets, paint, pesticides, pollution, etc.)
Physical Stress:
- poor posture at home and at work (standing, sitting, sleeping), repetitive movements, prior injuries, accidents, falls, etc.
Stress is an inevitable part of North American society. You won’t be able to completely eliminate all stress from your life however managing stress and trying to minimize the stresses that your body is exposed to will help your body function better. Regular Chiropractic check-ups to ensure that the spine is aligned and the nervous system is functioning optimally are a great way to gauge how your spine is being affected by the stresses in your life and to ensure that it is aligned so that problems do not accumulate over time and further compromise your health.
All the Best,
Dr. Peter