Usual questions we hear from
Fort Wayne back pain sufferers at Aaron Chiropractic Clinic sound
something like this: “What is Fort Wayne degenerative disease?”
(Aaron Chiropractic Clinic can explain what degenerative disc disease at the drop of a hat!)
and “Will nutrition help?” (“Yes!”)
WHAT IS DEGENERATIVE DISC DISEASE?
Degenerative disc disease results often from typical, age-related changes that happen in the discs of the spine that cause pain. The spinal
discs function like shock absorbers between the vertebral bones of
your spine. As discs degenerate, they do not do their job as
well. A discs’ health depends on the health of surrounding
structures as much as its own health. The cartilage endplates play a huge
role in the health of the disc. Unhealthy endplates
do, also, as they may contribute to degenerative
disc disease.
HOW CHIROPRACTIC CARE AND NUTRITION HELP DEGENERATIVE DISC
DISEASE
Chiropractic care at Aaron Chiropractic Clinic manages
disc health from both the inside and outside. The disc requires
some special nutritional elements to maintain its health and strength, ready to keep the spine mobile. It needs glucose, glycosaminoglycan,
calcium, magnesium, chondroitin sulfate, and more. It obtains
these nutrients via the cartilaginous endplates that surround
it above and below (70%) and from the sides of the disc
(30%). The cartilage endplates of the disc that are adjacent to the
vertebral bodies of the spine feed nutrients to the disc. Permeability of the cartilage endplate
increases as it ages and degenerates. Degeneration of the cartilage
endplate is linked to the start of cell starvation
and death of the disc due to poor nutrition. Degeneration of the cartilage
endplate may well be to blame for mechanical load-induced
dehydration of the disc’s nucleus pulposus and decreased levels
of glucose in the nucleus pulposus (inner gel of the disc)-annulus fibrosus
(outer bands of the disc) connection area. (Read more about disc nutrition with
glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin sulfate.) (1) The endplates are key
to the disc’s health. When the endplates are damaged by
degenerative changes, they can’t do their job of
transporting nutrients into the disc. One study stresses this
issue by describing how severe inhibition in the endplate
nutritional pathways likely leads to intervertebral disc disruption. (2) Additionally,
a good night’s rest may be good for more than beauty! resting recumbent even for a short time permits an
increase in the cervical spine and thoracic intervertebral discs’ hydration volume.
(3) Aaron Chiropractic Clinic cares for the disc from the inside with
nutrition and the outside with sleep recommendations in
addition to spinal manipulation.
Fort Wayne CHIROPRACTIC TREATMENT HELPS DEGENERATIVE DISC DISEASE
While lying down unloads the spine,
dynamic loading of the spine is beneficial, too. How? It comes
back to those cartilage endplates once again. The ability of the cartilage endplates The
more porous and healthy the endplates are, the more flow of nutrients is permitted. The less
porous, less hydrated, more degenerated the endplates are, the less flow of
nutrients is permitted. New research today describes the
benefits of dynamic loading (as opposed to static loading) on nutrient
transport into the disc via cartilage endplates. (4) Chiropractic spinal
manipulation is dynamic treatment of the spine. The protocols of Cox® Technic focus
on individual segments of the spine to enhance motion where disc
degeneration may exist. It is gentle, relieving
care delivered every day at Aaron Chiropractic Clinic!
CONTACT Aaron Chiropractic Clinic
Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. Sylvia Hrefna from Iceland on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr.
Michael Johnson as she discusses her relieving care with Cox®
Technic of a patient with disc degeneration in her cervical spine, the second
of two cases in this podcast.