Eating foods rich in polyphenols, natural substances found in fruits, vegetables, nuts and wine, could be beneficial for severe lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS), a condition in which the spinal canal narrows due to age-related changes. These are the results of a research born within the Preface project from the collaboration between the Department of Epidemiology and Prevention and the Department of Neurosurgery of the Irccs Neuromed of Pozzilli (Isernia).
The study – the results of which were published in the scientific journal ‘Nutrients’ – compared 156 patients with severe lumbar stenosis, who required surgery, with 312 healthy people who had participated in the Moli-sani epidemiological study. All participants had answered a questionnaire about their eating habits. In this way it was possible to calculate how many polyphenols were present in their diet. “By comparing the data on the diet followed by the two groups – reports Emilia Ruggiero, researcher in the Department of Epidemiology and Prevention – we were able to see how people with a diet rich in polyphenols, especially those in the categories of flavonoids and stilbenes, had a lower risk of severe lumbar stenosis compared to those taking less.”
“Severe lumbar stenosis – explains Gualtiero Innocenzi, head of Neurosurgery Unit 1 of Neuromed – is often a disabling condition”. The main clinical symptoms are lower back pain, tingling and pain in the legs, with deterioration of muscle strength and difficulty walking. “A symptomatology that can become so serious – highlights the specialist – that surgery becomes a necessary option. It is a process most often linked to aging, but which, as with many other pathologies, can be fought with a healthy lifestyle, especially with physical activity. This research shows how eating style can also make a contribution”.
“Polyphenols – Ruggiero recalls – are known for their antioxidant properties, which can help protect the body’s cells from damage caused by free radicals. In particular, flavonoids are present in foods such as intensely colored fruits and vegetables, such as apples , cherries, blueberries, tomatoes and onions, while stilbenes can be found in higher quantities in grapes and red wine”.
“Probably – comments Licia Iacoviello, director of the Department of Epidemiology and Prevention and professor of Hygiene and Public Health at the University of Insubria of Varese and Como – most people think that a healthy diet helps prevent only some diseases, such as cardiovascular ones”. This research “opens up a new perspective for us, extending the advantages of a correct diet to an unexpected pathology such as lumbar stenosis. It is a concept that we try to strongly underline: lifestyle, and above all food, is a tool very powerful for successful ageing, from any point of view”.