More and more people are suffering from fractures nowadays. Hard bones take a long time to heal and cause significant interference with the body's physiology. Proper dietary management can alleviate pain and promote healing.
The vast majority of fracture patients do not have internal organ injuries. However, due to the trauma of the injury or surgery, they are bedridden all day, with reduced activity, disrupting their original daily rhythm. This often leads to a loss of appetite and a lack of desire to eat. This is more common in elderly patients, those with weaker constitutions, or individuals with poor psychological resilience, and it is particularly evident in the short period after injury or surgery. In addition to psychological care, it is crucial to focus on diet. The diet should be nutritious, with excellent color, aroma, and taste to stimulate the appetite. Patients with limited arm mobility need to be fed. It is advisable to eat more vegetables rich in vitamin C, such as chili peppers, tomatoes, amaranth, green vegetables, cabbage, and radishes, to promote callus growth and wound healing.
Bones are mainly composed of organic and inorganic substances. Among the inorganic substances, calcium is the most abundant, with 99% of the body's calcium concentrated in the bones. Some believe that consuming more calcium can speed up healing in fracture patients, while others argue that bone broth should not be consumed as it may be detrimental to healing. According to medical experience or experimental research, there is no evidence that fracture patients need extra calcium supplementation. However, bone broth is nutritious, containing both protein and calcium, and it certainly cannot be an obstacle to bone healing. As an inexpensive and nutritious general food, it is perfectly fine. However, one thing is certain: for elderly patients who suffer fractures due to osteoporosis, it is essential to actively supplement calcium while treating the fracture, and also to supplement vitamin D to aid absorption.
According to the latest research, fracture patients may need to supplement trace elements such as zinc, iron, and manganese.
These trace elements are involved in the enzymes that regulate the body's metabolic activities, and some are raw materials for synthesizing collagen and myoglobin. Measurements have shown that the serum concentration of these trace elements in the body decreases significantly after a fracture. Therefore, it is hypothesized that appropriate supplementation in the early stages of fracture may be beneficial for healing. Animal liver, seafood, soybeans, sunflower seeds, and mushrooms are rich in zinc. Animal liver, eggs, legumes, green leafy vegetables, wheat, and bread are rich in iron. Oats, mustard greens, egg yolks, and cheese are rich in manganese.
In the early stages of a fracture, due to worry and inactivity, qi stagnation can occur, leading to a lack of strength to promote bowel movement, often resulting in constipation, which is more common in bedridden patients. It is advisable to eat more vegetables high in fiber and consume foods like bananas and honey that promote bowel movements. If necessary, laxatives can be taken, such as 6-9 grams of Maren Wan once or twice daily, or 20-30 ml of liquid paraffin once every evening. Bedridden patients are prone to urinary tract infections and stones, so they should drink more water to promote urination.
Fracture patients do not need to follow strict dietary restrictions, but one point must be emphasized: do not smoke. Cigarettes are linked to many diseases, including heart disease and cancer, and can impair the skin's wound healing ability. Recently, scientists have also discovered that smoking can affect bone healing. X-ray monitoring of new bone growth in fracture patients after surgery showed that smokers took an average of 2.98 months to grow 1 cm of new bone, compared to 2.32 months for non-smokers and 2.72 months for those who had quit. Scientists believe that among the thousands of harmful substances in cigarettes, nicotine plays a key role in affecting bone healing. It significantly reduces the oxygen content in body tissues and weakens the body's ability to produce collagen, which is a protein very useful for new bone formation.