Have you ever thought about the phrase “we are what we eat?” It seems trivial and overplayed, we know, but it’s the truth. Everything we put into our bodies, we essentially become, through our movements, moods, and our levels of health. Watching what you eat can make a world of difference when it comes to managing a chronic pain condition such as arthritis. If you work with a physical therapist to help manage a chronic pain condition, you will probably receive some nutritional advice as part of the process!
Physical therapists are not nutritionists, this is true. However, they can provide you with nutritional advice that can supplement your treatment plan.
If you’d like more information on how nutrition and physical therapy go hand-in-hand, give our office a call. We’d love to talk with you about how therapy and a better diet can improve your life!
What are chronic pain conditions, and how does nutrition affect them?
Did you know that several common conditions in America are directly related to diet and nutrition?
Here are some conditions in which nutritional advice will likely be a part of the patient’s physical therapy regimen:
- Osteoarthritis: Obese patients are more likely to develop arthritis, especially in the knee. Once a person has been diagnosed with osteoarthritis of the knee, managing their weight becomes the most important key to managing arthritis and pain.
- Diabetes: Diabetes and pre-diabetes pave the way for more serious conditions such as heart disease, kidney disease, and blindness. More than 90 percent of patients with diabetes also experience neuropathic pain. Diet and nutrition will play a key role in managing these conditions.
- Inflammation: American diets tend to have a lot of vegetable oils and other foods that cause inflammation in them. In many cases, a physical therapist will prescribe a diet with more antioxidants and anti-inflammatory foods to help manage pain.
- Obesity: This is a very common one. Pain that is related to obesity can become a vicious cycle. Being overweight causes a patient pain, so they become more sedentary. Becoming more sedentary causes them to gain more weight, which leads to more pain.
- Autoimmune Disorders: The combined total of various autoimmune disorder patients (such as Crohn’s disease, multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, and rheumatoid arthritis) now outnumber cancer patients in America by a wide margin. Autoimmune disorders are frequently linked directly to deficiencies in a patient’s diet.
Physical therapy and nutrition
These illnesses and diseases can seem pretty scary and intimidating, we know. The good news is that using proper nutrition can prevent many of them from ever being a problem of yours!
Correcting your diet can also help to reverse the symptoms and pain of many conditions. Your physical therapist will not only help you to restore muscle and joint pain through targeted stretches and guided exercise but also through nutritional advice.
During your first appointment with a physical therapist, addressing your dietary status and needs may be a key part of the process. In some cases, patients can also be referred to a dietitian.
Here are two possible diets that a physical therapist might recommend for patients:
- DASH Diet: DASH stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. It’s a diet that is low in saturated fats and cholesterol, and which has a heavy emphasis on more fruits and vegetables. The DASH Diet can reduce hypertension and lower the risk of heart disease, while also helping patients to manage their weight.
- Mediterranean Diet: The Mediterranean diet has been linked to the strikingly low rates of heart disease in certain Mediterranean countries. This diet features a lot of fish with Omega-3 fatty acids. It’s also high in plant-based fats such as olive oils and nuts.
You might be recommended an entirely new diet to help reduce chronic aches and pains, lose weight, and improve your overall health. You’ll be surprised at how quickly you begin to see changes in the way you feel from day to day. Trust us, your body will thank you!
Call our clinic to learn more and schedule an appointment
Having a physical therapist work with you to manage your pain through exercise and diet can turn your life around. Physical therapists help hundreds of thousands of patients each year to improve their health and reduce aches and pains. If you’re ready to schedule your first appointment with a licensed physical therapist, call our office today!
