The Role of Diet in Ayurvedic Treatment for Back Pain

Back Pain can be defined as that pain in the back, which may be localized to a specific area or diffused all over the back. Such discomfort may result from a variety of reasons like strain in muscles, arthritis, herniated discs, or even the diet one is following. Much to your surprise, what you eat may leave an impact on your back pain and fatigue. Sometimes your pain may be arising from eating unhealthy foods too often. Healthy food is always of great importance for keeping every aspect of the body and mind well. Inability to process the body when some form of unhealthy food is consumed, it leads to inflammation-a normal mechanism of self-protection of the body. Even though a little inflammation can be helpful in the short term, long-term inflammation leads to severe health issues such as back pain. A balanced diet therefore acts as a major factor controlling and preventing back pain.

Ayurvedic Conception of Back Pain

The Ayurvedic perspective of backache or Kati Shoola or Kati Graham is basically linked with an imbalanced level of the Vata Dosha, which includes air and ether elements. This imbalance affects the muscle, bone, and nerves, especially within the lower back and pelvic region, which naturally houses the Vata. Pain seems to be invariably associated with an irritated Vata. Several factors such as impeded digestion, ama accumulation, and under-lying diseases seem to contribute towards it. In addition, exposure to cold, late nights, inappropriate exercise, dehydration, travel, and diseases like constipation or anxiety can further disturb the Vata and thus worsen the pains in the lower back.

Role of Diet in Ayurvedic Treatment

Ayurveda postulates that every living and non-living thing consists of five basic elements or Pancha Mahabhootas. These are: Earth (Prithvi), Water (Ap), Fire (Teja), Air (Vayu), and Ether (Akasha). These elements in the food we consume nourish different tissues in the body. In Ayurveda, food (Ahara) is considered the best medicine and one of the three key pillars for health (Thrayo-Upasthamba). Pathya (wholesome) is the one who progresses an individual’s constitution and body channels while Apathya (unwholesome) is the one who does not progress an individual’s constitution and body channel. In Ayurveda, prevention and cure of illness lies in the proper kind of food (Pathya Ahara) and a healthy way of living (Vihara).

Dietary Precautions recommended in Ayurveda:

  • Eating at right time is Kale Bhojana
  • Eating that suit your body it is Satmya Bhojana
  • Hita Bhojana is which promotes well-being of one’s constitution
  • Sanitation and cleanliness (Suchi Bhojan)
  • Well-cooked and juicy food (Snigdha Bhojana)
  • Warm, nourishing food (Ushna Bhojana)
  • Food that is light and easily digestible (Laghu Bhojana)
  • Eating in the presence of mind while eating (Tan Mana: Bhojana)
  • All the six tastes should be found in your food (Sad-Rasayukta Ahara)
  • The sweet ones need to dominate your diet (Madhura Praya)
  • Eating calmly and not eating too quickly or slowly (Na Ati Druta Vilambita)
  • Eating after a bath (Snatah)
  • Cuisine when hungry (Kshudvan)
  • Wash hands, feet, and face before meals: Dhauta Pada-Kara-Anana
  • Prayer before meals: Pithru-Deva Tarpana
  • Feed guests, teachers, and children: Athithi-Balakaguru Tarpana
  • Food Respect: Anindan Bhunjaana
  • Eating in silence: Moun

The quantity of food consumed (Ahara Matra) would be only according to a person’s power of digestion (Agni), constitution, and age. According to Ayurvedic texts, two parts should fill the stomach, as one part for liquid and one part should remain unfilled to enable easy movement of Vata.

To digest well, it is recommended to start the meal with heavy, sweet, oily food items, followed by sour and salty ones, and end with dry, pungent, bitter, and astringent foodstuffs. It is also suggested to take rest for about 48 minutes after meal consumption to enhance digestion.

Vata-Pacifying Foods for Lower Back Pain

The body balance depends on three doshas: Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. Vata is the initiating action. Too much Vata dries, stiffens, and hurts the back. Diet must also figure in the overall management of lower back pain for imbalance in Vata. Soothe Vata with the easy-to-digest, warm, moist diet; avoid the cold, dry, raw foods and caffeine and fizzy drinks. Nourishment can be provided to your body and the Vata discomfort minimized by warm soups, cooked vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats like ghee. Hydration also helps to balance by taking warming spices in the meals like ginger and cinnamon.

To eat for Vata:

  • Fruits: Cooked apples, papaya, grapes, mangoes
  • Vegetables: Carrots, green beans, beets, squash, zucchini
  • Grains: Oats, rice, wheat, quinoa
  • Legumes: Red lentils, soy, tofu
  • Dairy: Buttermilk, yogurt, milk, ghee
  • Nuts: All types of nuts
  • Oils: Ghee, most oils
  • Meats: Chicken, eggs, fish, buffalo
  • Foods to Avoid with Vata:
  •  Raw fruits: Apples, pomegranate, watermelon
  • Raw vegetables: Potatoes, onions, sprouts
  • Grains: Barley, millet, corn
  • Legumes: Beans, chickpeas, kidney beans
  • Dairy: Powdered milk
  • Nuts: Flax seeds
  • Meat: Lamb, rabbit, turkey

Home Remedies- Foods to Avoid with Back Pain

Back pain can be pretty tricky, and lifestyle and posture trigger most cases, but your diet has a lot of role too. It will help you prevent the creation of inflammation that can worsen the pain, such as specific foods. To relax your lower back, you must stop doing three things: avoiding processed foods such as soda and candy, limiting as much as possible those which are excessively high in sugar and salt, and avoiding those with harmful additives; eliminating dairy products or being more careful with these for those who are lactose intolerant. 

Red meat and processed meats like bacon and sausages are saturated fats that worsen inflammation. Hence, one should prefer fatty fish or plant-based proteins like beans and lentils. 

Refined sugar is also found in a vast majority of sweet foods and beverages, which causes inflammation and weight gain, thereby creating additional stress on the lower back. 

Lastly, alcohol and caffeine could leave your body dehydrated, and this combined with what has been discussed earlier can further exacerbate stiffness in the lower back; hence, limit or avoid them for better back health.

Diet food for backpain

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Hydration and its Role in Ayurvedic Healing

Our spines have discs between the vertebras acting like cushions to help absorb shocks. When these discs lose water, compress and get less cushioned, their friction may lead to problems such as back pain and stiffness. Dehydration will affect your spine muscles, making them easier to injure as well as to cause strains in them. You would have to know how something like the water you drink or the amount of water that you consume is going to go about the process of affecting the health of your spine. As your spine has to do with virtually every aspect of your daily activities, keeping healthy should be of top priority. Hydration is good not just for your health in general but also for your back. 

Back Pain Aids in Ayurvedic Dieting

Ayurveda suggests dietary and lifestyle alterations in cases of back pain. Dietary advice by Ayurveda differs from person to person as these treatments are designed according to the balance that needs to be maintained: not just physical wellbeing but mental and spiritual as well.

Ayurveda accepts that all of us are distinct individuals, each having their own make-up, which is called Prakriti, a balance of Vata, Pitta, and Kapha doshas. Dietary advice is accordingly adapted for the individual’s Prakriti, age, power to digest (Agni), their current state of health, their surroundings, season, or any specific health disorders or imbalances.

Pathya Ahara (Wholesome Diet)

These are foods considered nourishing and healthy:

Pathya foods protect your body tissues, enhance growth, and balances or corrects any imbalances.

Examples are Wheat, rice, black gram, drumstick, brinjal, garlic, ghee, milk, buttermilk, sour and sweet foods and some meats like chicken and mutton, etc.

Apathya Ahara(Unwholesome Diet)

These have no good effect on your health and should be avoided. If you suffer from certain diseases or an Ayurvedic treatment is undertaken, so:

Apathya foods may worsen health conditions or imbalances.

Some of these include bitter, astringent, and pungent foods, cold water or foods, things that tend to cause dryness and foods such as spinach, cucumber, dry vegetables, and dry meats.

Conclusion

From what has been explained above, Ayurveda is a non-risky means of healing back pain and other related conditions besides healing human body health. Ayurvedic treatments can help extend relief over a long period and prevent the repetition of back pain by balancing the body and curing the real sources of pain. Therefore, with its personalized health care approach and holistic treatment methods, Ayurveda is the perfect alternative treatment for modern pain management. If you consider ayurvedic therapies to treat low back pain, see a well-experienced Ayurveda professional who diagnoses your requirement and then gives you a treatment.

Adoption of ayurvedic lifestyle modification-which includes following a sattvic diet, taking care of posture, practicing good body movements, doing regular exercise, and stress management-will hasten your recovery.  At Dheemahi Ayurveda doctors, with great experience in their hand, treat you with care towards your health and well-being. With a tradition running through five generations, we present authentic Ayurvedic treatments. We focus on regular check-ups to bring up your concerns and make sure you understand what your condition is, with daily consultation and physical examination. Our doctors also stress routine visits, especially for chronic conditions, and provide close supervision during therapies in relieving the symptoms. We take good care when it comes to the management of our Panchakarma therapies, tracking carefully your treatment plan.

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