What Supplements Should Be Taken for Lumbar Disc Herniation?

Update Date: 2024-05-16 Source: Network

Maintaining poor sitting posture for a long time can easily lead to lumbar disc herniation, and in severe cases, it can even cause nerve compression, resulting in painful discomfort. Lumbar disc herniation can be alleviated through physical therapy in daily life. In terms of daily diet, it is recommended to eat more high-calcium foods, as calcium is the main component of bones, and adding more can promote the self-healing ability of bones.

Lumbar disc herniation is one of the more common diseases, mainly due to degenerative changes in various parts of the lumbar intervertebral disc (nucleus pulposus, fibrous ring, and cartilage plate), especially the nucleus pulposus. Under the action of external forces, the fibrous ring of the intervertebral disc ruptures, and the nucleus pulposus protrudes (or escapes) from the rupture site to the rear or within the vertebral canal, causing irritation or compression of adjacent spinal nerve roots, resulting in a series of clinical symptoms such as low back pain, numbness and pain in one or both lower limbs. Lumbar disc herniation is most common in the L4-5 and L5-S1 segments, accounting for approximately 95% of cases. It is recommended that patients ensure a daily intake of approximately 150 grams of protein, preferably from high-quality protein sources such as milk and dairy products (note: older patients may prefer skim milk and skim milk powder), eggs, soy flour, animal liver and kidneys, lean meat, fish, chicken, yogurt, etc. When supplementing protein, it is important to follow the principle of eating small amounts frequently. However, supplements cannot cure lumbar disc herniation, and medication is still required for its treatment.

Certain traditional Chinese herbal medicines can be used to treat lumbar disc herniation. A typical prescription includes Radix Paeoniae Rubra, Herba Angelicae Pubescentis, Taxillus Chinensis, Radix Gentianae Macrophyllae, Radix Saposhnikoviae, Rhizoma Chuanxiong, Radix Angelicae Sinensis, Rhizoma Cibotii, Radix Cyathulae, Herba Asari, Radix Rehmanniae Preparata, and Cortex Cinnamomi at dosages of 10g each, except for Herba Asari at 3g and Cortex Cinnamomi at 6g. This prescription primarily functions to warm the kidneys, dispel cold, resolve blood stasis, and unblock the meridians to treat lumbar disc herniation. Besides herbal medicine treatment and daily protein supplementation, there are other methods to manage lumbar disc herniation. Patients can relieve some pain through appropriate waist exercises, choose acupuncture treatment to improve the meridians and microcirculation in the body, or adopt dietary therapy.