Disc Desiccation: Symptoms and Treatment

It is no secret that as we get older, our body starts showing signs of age. If you are not careful enough, bad habits will eventually come to get you. That being said, back pain is a common problem among 40+ years old people, disc desiccation being the number one condition you want to avoid. What are the causes of this condition? How to treat it? Let’s find out!

What’s disc desiccation?

Disc desiccation, also called degenerative disc disease (DDD), is mostly an age-related condition affecting older people. The main symptom of disc desiccation is pain around the lower part of the spinal column that is caused by inflammation around that area. Furthermore, this pain/inflammation is mainly due to the deterioration of the spinal column’s discs, which usually comes with old age.

What can cause disc desiccation?

As mentioned before, it is pretty natural and normal that the human body is deteriorating through the years, but age is not the only cause of disc desiccation disease. To make it simple for our readers, we made a list of the main causes behind DDD:

• Intense physical labor such a construction work or farm work.
• Trauma left by an accident, like a car crash for example.
• Sports injuries can happen with physical sports such as American football.
• Bad habits, not sitting properly, bending your back improperly, etc.
• Drugs, alcohol, cigarettes can also play a part in disc desiccation symptoms.

Can disc desiccation be cured?

Disc desiccation is a degenerative condition that affects most of us at one point or another in our lives. However, its severity will depend on a number of factors, and how well you took care of your body through the years. So yes, it is curable, and there are treatments for disc desiccation. In some cases, the treatments won’t be enough, as the patient will have to go through surgery to replace or completely change a disc in the spinal column.

What should I do if I suffer from disc desiccation?

Now, if you have back pain, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you have disc desiccation. If the pain is continuous and doesn’t stop after several days, then it is recommended you seek medical attention. In case you are diagnosed with disc desiccation, here’s what you can do to reduce the pain and improve your back’s posture:

• Avoid any drugs and cigarettes.
• Another important thing is your posture. Always check your posture when you are sitting, especially if you work in front of a computer for long hours. Try to keep your back straight and relax your shoulders.
• Stretching exercises on a daily basis.
• Eat good food! A healthy diet is your best friend.
• Don’t bend your back in the wrong way while lifting something heavy.

Also, you can always get pain relievers at the nearest pharmacy, although we recommend trying the tips above first before doing so. In any case, if you can’t bear with the pain anymore, you can see a doctor and get a cortisone shot, which will help relieve the pain from the disc desiccation.

What to eat in case of continuous back pain?

If it’s been several days or weeks that you are experiencing some kind of back pain, know that there are a couple of home remedies you can try. Here are the top home remedies for back pain:

• First, you need to raise the production of hyaluronic acid in your body. Therefore, eating a lot of citrus fruits is the best thing you can do as these fruits are packed with vitamins and will help your body produce more hyaluronic acid.
• Eating fruits with anti-inflammatory benefits such as grapes and cherries can be very helpful when suffering from back pain.
• Turmeric, in powder, fresh, or in capsules, is one of the most potent anti-inflammatory spices in the world. You can literally cook anything with turmeric, like pasta, creamy chicken, and even soup.
• Finally, you can take vitamin D supplements, which should help with your back pain.

What to do in case of severe disc desiccation?

So we went through the causes and the solutions, but what happens if let’s say, you have a misplaced disc causing lots of damages in your lower back area? There are in general 2 solutions for these rare cases. The first one being, a surgeon will have to partially fusion the affected disc. The second solution is a bit more radical, as it requires a replacement of the affected disc with an artificial one. As stated above, these cases are rare, and as long as you take good care of yourself, this shouldn’t happen.

And that’s all for today folks! Your spinal column is one of the most important parts of your body, so treat it with care and love. A good posture and a balanced diet will do wonders.