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People with blood disorders face challenges in maintaining their physical health as they age. Sickle cell disease has well-documented complications in various organ systems. Increasingly, professionals, consumers, and advocates involved in blood disorders are concerned about the cumulative and ongoing effect of organ-specifıc complications on function and participation.
Mobility impairment can occur among people with SCD as a result of cerebral palsy (which can result from stroke), stroke, and other etiologies. Recurrent skeletal disease due to repeated bone infarction, avascular necrosis of the femoral head, decreased bone density with vertebral disease leading to chronic back pain, and nutritional defıciencies are some of the complications of SCD that can affect mobility. Even in the absence of stroke, there can be a cumulative toll on the musculoskeletal system, resulting in decreased mobility.
Food and vitamins can support flexibility and mobility goals if one makes the right choices. Let’s have a look at what we could do better, in order to help those bones.
Protein
Protein is essential for repairing and building our muscles and connective tissues, making it vital if you want to step up your mobility game. Dietary protein is available in meat, poultry, fish and dairy products, however, plant-based sources, such as beans, tofu and Edamame are also a helpful way to increase your protein intake.
Drink up
It can be helpful to think of our body as a sponge. Without enough water, the sponge becomes stiff, weak, and brittle. Red blood cells with normal hemoglobin are smooth, disk-shaped, and flexible, like doughnuts without holes. They can move through the blood vessels easily. Cells with sickle cell hemoglobin are stiff and sticky. When they lose their oxygen, they form into the shape of a sickle or crescent, like the letter C. These cells stick together and can’t easily move through the blood vessels. This can block small blood vessels and the movement of healthy, normal oxygen-carrying blood. The blockage can cause pain. When we drink up and have enough water, inside of us, the red blood cells become flexible, agile and supple.
Natural ways to support flexibility and mobility
Certain herbs, nutrients and vitamins can aid being active and filled with energy, whether this be to get healthier overall, or to become a more flexible and mobile individual.
Fresh turmeric spice
Turmeric has anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving effects. Turmeric contains curcumin, which belongs to a family of powerful compounds called curcuminoids. It is widely believed that curcumin, which is the active ingredient in turmeric, has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.
Fresh ginger
The anti-inflammatory properties seem to help relieve pain and improve joint function. Comprising the active compounds, gingerols, ginger is revered in Eastern medicine. Aside from supporting digestion and circulatory health, ginger is often recommended for movement and agility.
Oily Fish
Rich in the long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), oily fish are now believed to support many areas of health, including mobility. These oil fish are salmon, sardines, pilchards, trout, mackerel, and herring – are the best source of long-chain omega-3 fats, which are important for overall health and can help people with joint pains.
Vitamin C
Collagen is the most abundant protein in the body. Some would call it the ‘glue’ that holds our skeletal structure together. Vitamin C contributes to the normal collagen formation for the normal function of cartilage. Eat it: Spinach.
Dark-skinned berries
Anthocyanidins are powerful plant compounds believed to support and reinforce the production of collagen. Eat them: Blueberries.
Watermelon
Not only is watermelon high in water, it also contains the amino acid L-citrulline, which enhances athletic performance and assists with post-workout recovery. Eat watermelon to train harder, go longer and recover quicker. And contrary to popular belief, watermelon is low in sugar.
Fresh Pineapple
An enzyme mixture found in fresh pineapple, bromelain is thought to offer some help with sprains and strains. People often take bromelain with turmeric and glucosamine as they make a perfect supplement partnership.
Dried Rosehips
For centuries, herbalists have referred to the rosehip as a ‘super-fruit’. Practitioners often recommend rosehip to those with active lifestyles or people who take glucosamine, turmeric, and ginger.
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