Paralysis Resource Guide - (Page 116) HEALTH MANAGEMENT NUTRITION It goes without saying, or at least it should, that good health depends on good nutrition. Food affects how we look and feel, and how our bodies work. Eating right provides energy, boosts our immune system, keeps us at the proper body weight, and keeps all body systems in harmony. Eating wrong can cause weight gain, diabetes, heart disease, cancer and other “ailments of civilization.” Eating well is even more essential for persons who are paralyzed. Because of changes that occur to the body after trauma or disease, it’s more important than ever to understand the role nutrition plays in maintaining health. After a spinal cord injury most people lose weight. The injury puts stress on the body as the body uses its energy and nutrients to repair itself. Stress ramps up the metabolic rate: the body burns calories faster. Moreover, many newly injured people are not able to eat a regular diet. As muscles atrophy, the weight loss continues — for about a month. Later, the problem isn’t too few pounds, it’s too many. Compared to the general population, people with spinal cord injuries are prone to two other diet-related problems: heart disease and diabetes. For reasons that are not fully understood, blood chemistry becomes impaired: Insulin tolerance is too high (the body produces more and more of the hormone insulin to transport energy to the body tissues; this is one of the pathways to diabetes), “bad” cholesterol and triglycerides are too high, and “good” cholesterol is too low. Advice: don’t smoke, don’t get heavy. For some it isn’t just the food, it’s the way the food is presented. People with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and other conditions who have problems swallowing must regulate the consistency and texture of foods. Food should be softer and cut into smaller pieces that can slide down the throat with minimum chewing. If food or drinks are too runny, some of the liquid can run into the airway to the lungs and cause coughing. If food is too dry, such as toast, it tends to irritate the throat and causes coughing. This problem can often be solved by adding butter, jam, etc. Foods that may be easier to manage include custards, 116
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