Nutritional or vitamin imbalances, alcoholism, and exposure to toxins can damage nerves and cause neuropathy. Vitamin B12 deficiency and excess vitamin B6 are the best-known vitamin-related causes. Several medications have been shown to occasionally cause neuropathy.
Peripheral neuropathy is the most common, impacting 7 in 10 diabetics, among others. PN is often mistaken for another common illness, multiple sclerosis (MS).
Some of the health conditions that can cause peripheral neuropathy include: excessive alcohol drinking for years. low levels of vitamin B12 or other vitamins. physical damage to the nerves, such as from an injury or during surgery.
Regular exercise, such as walking three times a week, can reduce neuropathy pain, improve muscle strength and help control blood sugar levels. Gentle routines such as yoga and tai chi might also help.
PN was strongly associated with earlier mortality. Mean survival time for those with PN was 10.8 years, compared with 13.9 years for subjects without PN. PN was also indirectly associated through impaired balance.
Walking can reduce the pain and other symptoms of neuropathy from the nerve damage in your feet and lower legs. Walking and other light aerobic exercises have various benefits for people affected by neuropathy, which is a wide range of conditions involving disease and damage to the peripheral nerves.
Drink lots of water
Water should be a staple in any diet, and even more so for those looking to reduce nerve pain. It's critical to stay hydrated throughout the day to reduce inflammation and avoid triggering pain receptors. Aim to drink eight 8-oz. of water each day.
"Abbott's Proclaim XR spinal cord stimulation system provides patients with painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy the opportunity to obtain a better quality of life while more seamlessly fitting into their current lifestyles."
Risk factors
Diabetes, especially if your sugar levels are poorly controlled. Alcohol misuse. Vitamin deficiencies, particularly B vitamins. Infections, such as Lyme disease, shingles, Epstein-Barr virus, hepatitis B and C, and HIV.
Cooler temperatures: With peripheral neuropathy, according to Loma Linda University Health, your feet will be far more sensitive to cooler air. As temperatures drop at night, your peripheral nerves can begin to tingle more, and you'll feel more burning or sharp pains.
Diagnosing neuropathy
Your doctor may order an electromyography, or EMG, to see how well your nerves are working. If your EMG is normal and you continue to have symptoms of neuropathy, your doctor may order a skin biopsy to look at nerves that are too small to be tested with an EMG.
Both US and MRI are excellent modalities for imaging of the peripheral nerves. They are able to delineate the site of disease, assess its severity, identify the cause of neuropathy and also monitor response to therapy.
Untreated neuropathy leads to complications
Numbness may seem like a reprieve after you've been dealing with pain, but constant numbness can lead to serious complications, such as a foot ulcer. You might scratch your foot, and without properly functioning sensory nerves, you may not realize the extent of your injury.
The most common type of neuropathy is peripheral neuropathy. It affects the nerves in the hands, feet, legs, and arms. It generally starts in the feet, and it tends to start in both feet at once.
Usually a peripheral neuropathy can't be cured, but you can do a lot of things to prevent it from getting worse. If an underlying condition like diabetes is at fault, your healthcare provider will treat that first and then treat the pain and other symptoms of neuropathy.
Vicks is sometimes used on the feet to relieve neuropathy pain, treat toenail fungus, and soften callouses.
Indeed, studies show that acupuncture is an effective treatment for peripheral neuropathy, with fewer side effects than medications. The idea is to prevent disease by keeping the nerves active and engaged.
caffeine – Caffeine can irritate the nerves and make neuropathy symptoms worse. It is best to limit or avoid caffeine if you are experiencing nerve pain.
Yes. You can relieve neuropathic pain by using Apple cider vinegar. Apple cider vinegar is one of the best home remedies used for the treatment of neuropathy.
Deeply stroke the skin of both feet moving in an upward direction toward your knee. Next squeeze and massage all of the tissue of your feet starting between the toes, include the front and back surfaces of your feet. Squeeze, press and massage the entire foot as deeply as you can without causing pain.
Chronic stress can lead to neuropathy by damaging the nervous system. When the nervous system is damaged, it can cause pain, numbness, tingling, and other symptoms. The end result is pain, discomfort, or even worse.