Oxford Nutrition Approaches for Degenerated Discs: Broccoli, Aloe and Grapeseed Oil

Who knew? Researchers are an interesting breed. How they think up things to try is a fascination! What would prompt them to think “broccoli, aloe vera and grapeseed may help disc degeneration” is a marvel to Satterwhite Chiropractic and surely to our Oxford chiropractic patients, but a good marvel! They may be onto something to help discs that are degenerated which cause back pain, neck pain, and disruption of life.

PREVENTING AND POSSIBLY REVERSING DISC DEGENERATION

Oxford low back pain is quite closely associated with degeneration of the intervertebral disc in the spine.  At its basic level, the Oxford degenerated disc is defined by a decreased number of cells as well as alteration to its tissue and extracellular matrix content. In many studies, rabbit discs are examined as they are similar to human discs. In one rabbit study, researchers looked at the degenerated intervertebral disc and its response to the application of broccoli sprout extract. They proposed and their study discovered that it had restorative and preventive influences on degenerated discs. (1) In another rabbit study, grapeseed extracts were put on degenerated discs. Due to their being natural flavonoids with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, grapeseed extracts were evaluated to see how their inhibitory and anabolic effects would be on degenerated discs. They showed to be preventive and restorative in terms of affecting the degraded disc tissues’ collagen fibrils. (2) In a third study, aloe vera gel was utilized. Aloe vera gel stopped and reversed disc degeneration. Researchers wrote that there was a statistically significant (a big deal!) gradual reversal of degenerative changes. These modifications were seen in the collagen content organization, the nucleus pulposus and annulus fibrosus cell increase, and degree of disc degeneration. (3) Satterwhite Chiropractic will follow these interesting studies and see how they will translate into human use. Maybe these findings will inspire Oxford chiropractic patients to eat more broccoli, use grapeseed, and find a way to use some aloe vera gel?

CONTACT Satterwhite Chiropractic

Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Robert Krause about disc degeneration on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he explains The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management integration of nutrition, exercise, and treatment of the painful degenerated disc.

Make your next Oxford chiropractic appointment soon. We can chat about if you knew just how influential such interventions like grapeseed, aloe vera and broccoli might be on helping ease Oxford back pain by treating the herniated disc.