What To Eat & Avoid When You Have Cervical Spondylosis?

Cervical spondylosis is the process of wear and dystrophy of the vertebrae associated with the aging of the body. With it, for a long period, the height of the discs and the stability of the spinal column remain. Therefore, the disease, not complicated by damage to the facet joints, rarely has vivid symptoms.⁽¹⁾

There are various ways to improve cervical spondylosis, such as gymnastics, stretching, exercise and posture, and the height of the pillow. But, diet and nutrition are likely to be effective in improving cervical spondylosis as well.

Even if you try to improve cervical spondylosis with a diet, it has no immediate effect, but since the body’s capital is made up of food, there is plenty of room for consideration.⁽⁴⁾⁽⁵⁾

Since one head supports a heavy head of about 6 kg, it is necessary to pay attention to the nutritional balance of food to strengthen the bones, muscles, and cartilage of the neck. If the muscles of the neck are firm, it will be easier to support the head, the posture will be correct, and cervical spondylosis will be improved as a result.

The cartilage called the intervertebral disc, which acts as a cushion between bones such as the cervical spine, is made of collagen. Collagen itself is synthesized in the body, so it is important to increase the number of amino acids in the body, which is a material for collagen, rather than the collagen balls that have become popular these days. It is important to take protein.

Foods rich in leucine, one of the amino acids, are also effective in strengthening muscles. By the way, it is said that the health effects of leucine are not only muscle strengthening and strengthening, but also liver function enhancement and hair growth effects. Beef and dairy products contain a lot of leucine.

Speaking of strengthening bones, it is essential to take calcium from milk and fish. Ingesting only calcium has little effect on strengthening bones. Taking calcium and vitamin D is more efficient.

Vitamin D has the effect of promoting the absorption of calcium, so it’s a good food combination. Vitamin D is abundant in foods such as salmon, mackerel, and dried shiitake mushrooms.

At the hospital, it is said that you should try to exercise appropriately and have a well-balanced diet, so good protein (maybe a collagen-based supplement), dairy products, calcium, and vitamins might be the right choices.

If the body gets cold, such as the neck and shoulders, the cervical spine and muscles will also solidify, which can exacerbate cervical spondylosis, so try to eat as warm and nutritious as possible.

It may not have immediate effects to alleviate cervical spondylosis, but it will be gradually improved by the daily accumulation of these compounds.

Factors that prevent the absorption of calcium should be avoided if you have cervical spondylosis. These include oxalic acids containing foods such as horse gram, the stem of the lotus, and spinach. Foods with low vitamin D content should be limited and stop taking foods high in animal protein (eggs, chicken, fish, and red meats). Limit the use of table salts, sugar drinks, fatty foods, tobacco, and drinks containing phosphorus, caffeine, and alcohol.⁽⁴⁾⁽⁵⁾

What is cervical spondylosis? As practice shows, the pathology is based on the proliferation along the edges of the vertebrae of the coracoid growths – bone osteophytes. They arise as a protective reaction to the destruction of fibrous rings. The body thus tries to compensate for the load and stabilize the resulting deformation.

In especially difficult cases, ankylosis develops (joint fusion), from which nearby tissues, nerves, and blood vessels suffer. In this case, spondylosis from seven vertebrae of the cervical spine most often affects C4, C5, and C6.

Further progression of the disease leads to stenosis (narrowing) of the spinal canal and a disorder of the biomechanical properties of the axial column.

Spondylosis is often confused with other spinal disorders, which significantly complicates the diagnosis and leads to incorrect therapy of the disease. So, the formation of bone growths should be differentiated from ankylosing spondylitis, which is an inflammatory disease.

It is also necessary to distinguish the spondylosis and spondylarthrosis of the cervical spine. The latter is a particular form of osteoarthritis and leads to the destruction or fusion of facet joints. It occurs as a complication of spondylosis.⁽²⁾

Cervical spondylosis rarely develops as an independent pathology, much more often it appears against the background of other destructive-dystrophic changes. The main reason for the involutional process is considered to be a metabolic disorder in combination with a lack of physical activity.

The following circumstances can provoke the occurrence of spondylosis of the cervical spine:

• chronic diseases of the spine, usually osteochondrosis;
• endocrine disorders;
• excessive loads;
• flat feet.
• hypothermia;
• injuries, dislocations, bruises;
• long static stress;

A separate point provoking the growth of osteophytes is the lack of a normal physiological load on the cervical vertebrae. This condition is caused by scoliosis, poor posture, cervical lordosis, any activity for which you have to constantly tilt your head. ⁽³⁾

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