We all know that eating a nutritious, well-balanced diet is essential for good health and maintaining optimal levels of mobility. Yet, it's not just extra weight, high blood pressure and increased risk of cancer that can follow decades of poor dietary choices. Study after study links overconsumption of added sugars to a litany of degenerative health problems including chronic back and joint pain.
As it's currently Sugar Awareness Week, our new blog discusses the impact of sugar rich diets and how to avoid them.
It's All About Inflammation
There are scores of compelling reasons to commit to a low sugar diet right here, right now. Not least of which is the fact added or 'refined' sugars trigger the body's inflammatory responses. When levels of sugar in the blood are high, the body's finely tuned balance of chemicals and hormones gets disrupted.
It increases the production of inflammatory molecules like cytokines and AGEs (advanced glycation end products). Too much sugar also causes cells to become insulin resistant. They lose their ability to process the substance and more sugar gets stored as visceral fat. Unfortunately, visceral fat creates its own inflammatory chemicals which force the body to remain in a constant state of stress.
Inflammation and Chronic Pain
The first thing to know about inflammation is it can be extremely useful, even lifesaving. It occurs in response to a perceived threat such as an injury or infection. It's an impromptu defence mechanism; the biological equivalent of getting into a fight to protect yourself. It's effective but it comes at a cost.
The inflammatory chemicals neutralise the threat but also introduce extra fluid to tissues. This causes swelling, nerve sensitivity and pain. As overconsumption of refined sugar maintains this state, chronic pain (in the back and other areas) can quickly become the norm even without obvious injury or damage to muscles.
Here are 4 ways to reduce the impact of harmful sugars and keep painful inflammation at bay:
1. Don't Exceed the RDA
The British Heart Foundation says it's safe for women to consume a maximum of 25g (6 teaspoons) of refined sugar per day. Men can consume as much as 36g (9 teaspoons).
2. Keep Moving
Physical activity is a big part of maintaining a healthy weight and preventing diseases like diabetes which impair the body's ability to process sugar.
Easy Physio supports those who suffer from chronic low back pain by prescribing custom exercise rehab programmes and 1-2-1 support from musculoskeletal specialists. To learn more, click here to complete a FREE back health assessment.
3. Stay Hydrated
Drinking lots of water enables the body to function efficiently. The more hydrated your body, the more redundant sugar your kidneys can flush out in urine.
4. Manage Your Stress
We already know the body becomes inflamed when stressed. So, staying healthy and pain free requires good stress management skills.
If you're an Easy Physio member and need help with reducing stress levels, arrange a consultation with one of our health and wellbeing experts via your dashboard.
The Easy Physio team includes a dietitian with extensive clinical experience in the provision of nutritional therapies for cancer, diabetes, osteoperosis and more. They support members by providing 1-2-1 advice on the management of chronic pain via therapeutic diets. Click here to learn more about our experts.
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