Sciatica is used to describe any pain that starts in the lower back and radiates down the leg. This pain is caused by an irritation, inflammation, pinching or compression of a nerve in the lower back. If you have Sciatica, you may experience mild to severe pain anywhere along the path of the sciatic nerve – that is, anywhere from the lower back, through the hips, buttocks and / or down your legs. It can also cause muscle weakness in your leg and foot, and a tingling pins-and-needles sensation in your leg, foot and toes or / and numbness in your leg. Here is a Sciatica Diet Plan Indian (Indian diet plan for Sciatica/ Lower Back pain.
Sciatica can come on suddenly or gradually, depending on the cause. The most common cause is a herniated or slipped disk that causes pressure on the nerve root. Most people with sciatica get better on their own with time and self-care treatments.
Causes of Sciatica / Back Pain
- Have an injury / previous injury
- Normal aging
- Overweight
- Diabetic
- Weak muscles of your back and abdomen
- Osteoarthritis
- Smoking
- Sedentary lifestyle, as well as
- Bad posture
The goal of treatment is to decrease the pain and increase mobility. Depending on the cause, many cases of sciatica go away over time with some simple self-care treatments.
Self-care treatment for Sciatica
- A heathy diet
- Appling ice and / or hot pack
- Anti- Inflammatory medications
- Performing gentle stretches
However, if simple self-care treatments do not relieve your pain, you will need to visit a specialist/doctor.
Indian diet plan for Sciatica
If you have experienced sciatica symptoms, you will also be aware of how painful it can be. An important part of treatment which is often ignored is what you eat when you have sciatica.
So, can your diet affect your sciatica symptoms and pain? Can what you eat have an effect on your symptoms, can few small changes could bring benefits? YES!!
A healthy, balanced diet with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables is something we should all be looking out for. But what is good for sciatica in particular? There is a lot of inflammation around the sciatic nerve so a diet that reduces the levels of excessive inflammation in your body will help.
Foods to Avoid in Sciatica / Lower Back Pain
Here is a list of foods that should be AVOIDED, owing to the inflammation, and a general care for those who are diabetic and /or overweight and suffering with the sciatica pain.
Sugar
Simple sugars, including table sugar, sugary drinks, sweets, indulgent desserts, as well as hidden sugars like in table sauces, and syrups are definitely foods that need to be avoided when you have sciatica. Sugar significantly increases inflammation throughout the body when consumed in moderate to high amounts and may also lead to type-2 diabetes when consumed too much over a very long time.
Vegetable Oil / Saturated Fats
Vegetable oils, palm oils, sunflower oil are often used in cooking and in ready to eat foods and can lead to worsening inflammation within the body. Check nutrition labels and ingredients when buying foods to know the kind of fat / oil used in the product.
Saturated fats are known to increase inflammation, therefore fried food, high-fat dairy products, fatty red meats are best avoided.
Processed Foods / Maida Foods
Pizzas, burgers, breads and buns, noodles, Chinese sauces, etc. are a no-no due to their high fat and sugar content and pro-inflammatory properties. Processed foods contain chemicals that can make inflammation worse. Inflammation will worsen the irritation around the affected nerve, making your sciatica worse.
Artificial Sweetners
Diet coke and other sugary aerated drinks are foods to be avoided when you have sciatica due to the artificial sweeteners – aspartame and many others present in it to add to the sweetness.
The sweeteners that are present in most of these drinks have negative effects on inflammatory processes within the body. There is also some research to show that these sweeteners actually increase sugar craving therefore increasing your tendency to eat more food, contributing to being overweight and therefore increasing the chances of getting Type 2 diabetes.
Alcohol
According to a research study, levels of inflammatory marker CRP is shown to increase and be high in people who consume alcohol. Therefore, alcohol is best avoided to reduce inflammation and the sciatica nerve pain.
Sciatica Diet Plan Indian
A general rule for a sciatica diet would be to add foods that have anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative properties. Both of these actions help to reduce the symptoms associated with sciatica by reducing the inflammatory chemicals around the irritated nerve root.
A sciatica diet plan Indian, is a diet rich in vitamins and minerals, like Vitamin B, magnesium, omega 3 fatty acids and fibre. B vitamins are important for nerve health, and if your diet is deficient in them you may have to struggle to heal the nerve damage. Eating foods rich in magnesium will not only help in controlling muscle spasms, boost good muscle function but they can also improve the symptoms of sciatica. An Indian diet plan for Sciatica should be rich in fibre, complex carbohydrates and low fat would help with easing the sciatica symptoms along with excess weight gain and diabetes.
Sciatica Diet Plan Indian (Indian diet plan for Sciatica/ Lower Back pain )
Below is a sample of sciatica diet plan Indian :
Meal time | Menu | Approx. calories |
Early morning | 1 cup green tea+ 1 tsp pumpkin seeds + 1 tsp flaxseeds | 20 |
Breakfast | 2 idlis with 2 tbsp chutney/ 2 uthappa/ 1 cup poha / 1 slice bread with 1 egg | 170 – 200 |
Mid-morning | Fruit – 1 apple/ 2-3 slices pineapple/ 5-6 strawberries/ 10 cherries/ 2 slices watermelon + 5 almonds + 2 walnut halves | 120 |
Lunch | Salad + green leafy vegetable/ vegs +1 jowar roti + I cup pulse or dal/ fish curry + ½ cup rice | 450 |
Tea time | Ginger Tea + sprout chaat /handful nuts and seeds/ handful homemade popcorn | 170 |
Dinner | Broccoli / vegetable soup + oats upma / 2 moong dal chila/ dalia khichadi | 350 |
Bedtime | 1 cup Haldi milk (cow) | 120 |
This sample diet can be altered as per your routine. Cooking foods in virgin coconut oil, mustard oil or any virgin oil will be beneficial.
Sciatica Diet Plan Indian; Diet Tips
- Fish such as salmon and mackerel are sources of omega-3 fatty acids, which will help your body in the healing process by promoting healthy inflammation.
- If you are a vegetarian, you can also get these fats from sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, flaxseeds, walnuts and avocados.
- Dark green leafy vegetables, nuts and seeds, cashew, good quality dark chocolate are rich sources of magnesium and can be included in the diet.
- Vitamin B rich foods include milk, dairy products, salmon, eggs, mushrooms and fermented foods among others.
- Vegetables like broccoli, onion, cabbage, cauliflower, radish, turnip, and garlic have anti-inflammatory as well as anti-oxidant properties which will ease the inflammatory symptoms.
- Adding Haldi (turmeric) in foods, as we generally use it in Indian cooking is particularly beneficial due to the presence of curcumin which is a potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant substance present in Turmeric.
- Vitamin supplements can help if you are very low on one of the vitamins or minerals mentioned above. Before taking supplements please consult your health care provider. The priority should be making some of these small changes to your diet that will bring long lasting benefits, not just for your sciatic pain, but in all aspects of your life.
Anti Inflammaflattory diet for Sciatica Pain
Although what you eat goes a long way to controlling your weight, your diet also affects other bodily processes like energy levels, inflammation, mood and sleep.
Since inflammation is a necessary part of the healing process, we know that controlling chronic, ongoing inflammation is one of the most important factors to recovery from sciatica and the pain caused due to it. Anti inflammatory diet plans are hence very important to bring down such pains.
EndNote:
Make changes to your diet.Add anti-inflammatory foods and minimize the foods that promote inflammation. Such foods not only leads to sciatica but also other harmful processes in the body. Replace these foods with healthier alternatives. It will help to bring your symptoms under control. Hope this Sciatica Diet Plan Indian (Indian diet plan for Sciatica/ Lower Back pain helps you in finding better health and fitness.
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