There are many factors that shape spinal and bone health over time, and diet and nutrition matter. For scoliosis patients with an unnatural spinal curvature, being mindful of the best foods to eat may improve overall health and responsiveness to treatment.
The best diet for adult scoliosis supports strong bones and is nutrient dense. A healthy diet with foods rich in calcium, Vitamin D, and protein, while limiting processed and inflammatory foods, may improve spinal health, overall health, and contribute to a better treatment outcome.
Adults with scoliosis can benefit from a whole-patient approach to scoliosis treatment, including guidance on the best foods to eat, and foods to avoid for a healthy scoliosis diet.
Adult scoliosis patients have to be mindful of bone health. While growth is the main trigger for progression in children, age-related changes to spinal health and bone health can contribute to curve progression in older adults.
While scoliosis treatment plans are customized, the focus of many adult scoliosis patients' treatment is pain relief, preserving bone health, improving posture, support, and stability for the spine.
While no diet alone can treat scoliosis, when combined with nonsurgical treatment modalities such as scoliosis-specific exercise, specialized chiropractic care, and when appropriate, corrective bracing, it can improve a patient's overall health and contribute to a successful treatment outcome.
And when it comes to long-term quality of life and spinal health, lifestyle is important. Over time, maintaining a healthy weight and activity level shapes bone and muscle health, so should be considered in scoliosis management.
Protecting bone health involves a balanced intake of calcium, protein, and certain vitamins.
The spine consists of vertebrae (bones) that sit atop one another, and for optimal spinal health, they need to stay aligned and balanced to protect the spine's healthy curves, but if low bone density is occurring, the spine's strength and function may decline.
Changing bone density over time is a particular challenge for menopausal women, and this also accounts for the higher prevalence rate of female degenerative scoliosis patients.
It's important to support bone health as we age because our skeletal system establishes stability. The spine, as the body's central structure, stabilizes the body, protects organs and the spinal cord for central nervous system function, acts as an attachment point for key muscles, supports movement, and healthy posture.
Foods helpful for bone health provide a balance of calcium, proteins, and key vitamins.
Stronger bones make a stronger spine, and improving bone health may facilitate a better treatment response and help preserve treatment results over time.
Foods to help build and maintain strong bones that are calcium-rich include:
A diet high in calcium also helps with disease prevention, lowering the risk of osteoporosis.
Healthy foods have multiple benefits, so you'll notice some overlap in the categories, and when it comes to the role of protein in overall health, a protein-rich diet supports bone and muscle health.
Animal-based foods high in protein include:
Plant-based foods high in protein include:
Protein is needed for bone health because protein makes up approximately half of a bone's volume and the majority of its mass. Protein and collagen (glue that holds bones together) form a structured, yet flexible, framework for the bones that supports shock absorption and prevents injury.
Protein is also needed for strong muscles, and a strong spine that's able to maintain its natural curves needs support from strong core and back muscles. Protein is what muscles are made from - consuming protein involves the body breaking it down into amino acids that are necessary for muscle repair and growing new muscle fibers. So protein is needed to repair, grow, and maintain strength (muscle endurance).
Vitamins are needed for producing energy, a healthy immune system, and bone and tissue protection. Important vitamins for bone health include vitamins D, K, and C.
Vitamin D is needed for bone mineralization. Vitamin K activates protein release to bind with calcium and the bone's framework, and Vitamin C is essential for collagen production - collagen makes bones flexible.
Foods that are high in important vitamins for bone health include:
Vitamins are needed for bone health because they facilitate calcium absorption, trigger proteins to build bones, and collagen production.
The amount of essential vitamins needed to support the body's health and function aren't produced by the body so need to come from a vitamin-rich diet.
A scoliosis curve isn't just driven by one factor, especially when it comes to adult scoliosis. There is a structural element in the tilted and rotating vertebrae, but it may also be shaped by posture, which in older adults, tends to decline over time, and weakening bones due to age-related changes in bone health, and a lack of support from weak muscles may contribute to scoliosis onset/progression.
Foods that scoliosis patients should avoid are considered unhealthy for most, but scoliosis patients, in particular, should be mindful of foods that don't support a healthy weight, bone health, muscle health, proper hydration, and the body's ability to fight infection.
Carrying excess body weight adds pressure to the spine and contributes to poor posture, poor muscle strength and balance, so avoid foods high in unhealthy fats and sugar, and sugary drinks should also be avoided.
Sugary foods also block calcium absorption so don't promote bone health, as do certain foods with too much salt, and a high salt intake dehydrates the body, rather than hydrating it. Hydration is important for overall health and function, but also for the health of the intervertebral discs that sit between adjacent vertebrae and give the spine structure, flexibility, and aid shock absorption.
Processed foods and drinks, in general, tend to contain high amounts of sugar and salt and should be replaced with anti-inflammatory foods high in vitamins and essential nutrients like fruits and vegetables and water.
A well balanced diet strengthens the immune system, making the body more resistant to infection and helping with disease prevention (osteoporosis).
Vitamins and supplements such as nutritional drinks (low sugar) and fortified cereals can help scoliosis patients stay healthy during busy stages of life.
Awareness is the best way to support spinal health long-term. Patients who understand their curve and body's needs are more capable of managing scoliosis effectively, and that includes a proper diet that supports healthy weight, strong bones, and nutrient absorption.
Specialized healthcare professionals can guide patients on when dietary changes are necessary, including foods to embrace, and foods to restrict.
The human body's overall health and function is shaped by a number of factors, one of which is lifestyle, and for scoliosis patients, a scoliosis-friendly diet may help minimize some of the condition's negative aspects and increase the spine's responsiveness to treatment.
Here at CLEAR, patients benefit from a whole-patient approach to treatment, and once the main scoliosis treatment options are discussed, lifestyle factors that may also be contributing to curve onset/progression, such as diet, should be considered.
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