Can Water Cure Back Pain?

All of us don't realize the fact that structural and muscular dysfunctions or imbalances, which are a major cause of back pain, are mainly due to dehydration. This is why health experts suggest daily intake of water as the best remedy for back pain.

Link Between Water and Back Pain

The reason why water strengthens our back lies in the structure of human spine. There lies a disk between every two vertebrae. It acts as a shock absorber for the weight we put our backs. This disk can be divided into two parts. The outer, flexible and very tough ring is filled with a gelatinous substance, called as nucleus pulposis. The inner substance is primarily water.

All day long, due to gravitational force on our upright spine, water slowly squeezes out of the disks. At night times, when we lie down, the disks rehydrate slowly. This process of dehydration at daytime and rehydration at nighttime is the reason why we are generally about ¼ to ½ inch shorter at time we go to bed than we wake up in the morning. To keep the disks hydrated, regular movement during the day is very important - because as your spine moves forward and back, your disks absorb the available water.

How Water Helps?

If your body has adequate water levels, your disks will successfully rehydrate at nighttime and also during daytime whenever possible. When the gelatinous center does not get enough water, the whole disk gets affected. The disk is designed in such a way that - when adequate levels of water is available, at the outer ring bears 25% and the inner nucleus pulposis supports 75% of the weight load.

When the inner portion of your spine is dehydrated, it fails to support its share of the load. So it puts more weight on the outer ring, which it cannot bear. This causes back pain, swelling, and also ruptures or herniations of the outer part of the disk.

Take More Water Everyday

So, what do you understand now? The simplest and most effective way to avoid and cure back pain is taking more clean, healthy water everyday. Also, flex your back and neck front to back few times throughout the day. Stretching your spine forward and back many times day helps in rehydrating your disks, provided you gave your body adequate amount of water. But, be sure you take uncontaminated and filtered water.