Pain

You may feel in the middle of your neck or on one side or the other. The pain may travel to the shoulder and shoulder blade or to the upper chest. In tension headaches the pain often travels to the back of the head and sometimes to the side of the head and behind the eye or even into the ear. If a nerve root is pinched, then as well as the pain you may have numbness or tingling that can be felt down the arm right to the fingers.

Tension

Most muscles of the body relax completely when they are not being used but some muscles (known as 'antigravity muscles') have to work all the time in order to keep your body upright. Muscles at the back of your neck must always be tensed, otherwise your head would fall forwards when you are sitting or standing. when these muscles work too hard it can cause neck pain and tension headaches. People who are worried or under stress often tighten their muscles more than is neccessary to hold their head upright - in other words, they are literally 'tense' Tension headaches are very common and are often wrongly called migraines.

Whiplash

This type of injury often follows a rear-end collision in a car. In this type of collision, first the body is carried forward and the head flips backwards. then, as the body stops, the head is thrown forwards following a whiplash injury there is often a delay before the pain and stiffness start. Although whiplash can badly damage your neck, the majority of peaople who suffer these shunt accidents do not have major damage. In most cases injuries feel better within a few weeks or months. Seat belts and properly ajusted headrests in cars have significantly reduced the damage from whplash injuries.

Cervical spondylosis

With everyday use over many years the discs and the facet joints become worn. This wear from person to person. The discs become thinner and this causes the spaces between the vertebrae to become narrower. Also, 'spurs' of bone, know as osteophytes, from at the edges of the vertebrae and the facet joints. In a way this is a particular from of osteoarthritis (see are booklet ' octeoarthritis) but it is known as ' cervical spondylosis'. These changes may also occur at the bottom of the apine where they are known as ' lumber spondylosis'. These conditions should not be confused with ankylosing spondylitis, where inflammation in the spine can cause the bones of the spine to fuse together (see arc booklet 'ankylosing spondylitis'). The abnormalities found in cervical and lumbar spondylosis can be seen on x-rays(see - figure 2) and are present in almost everyone by the age of 65. However, many people have to neck pain even though quite significant changes can be seen on their x-rays.

When these changes do cause pain it may come either from the lining of worn joints or from stretched ligaments. Occasionally buiging discs or osteophytes pinch the nerve roots and this causes pain or numbness that travels into the arm. If the vertebral artery is pinched, this reduces theblood supply to the area of the brain that controls balance and this may lead to dizziness. Rarely an extra rib ( cervical rib) can cause partial blockage of the blood supply to the arms, resulting in pain and numbness in the hands. Very rarely, in severe apondylosis, the spinal cord can be squeezed, which causes weaknes and numbness in the arms and legs.

Non - specific neck pain

Many people develop a stiff and painful neck for no abvious reason. it many happen after sitting in a draught or after a minor twisting injury, for example while gardening. The underlying cause for this type of neck pain is not fully understood, so it is called non-specific neck pain. Having non - specific neck pain does not mean that your neck is damaged and often it happens in people whose necks would appear completely normal under an x - ray. It s the most common type of neck pain and often disappears after a few days.

What is inside the neck

The neck contains the top end of the spinal column or spine, which supports the head and also protects the spinal cord. The spinal cord is the main nerve which runs from the brain, through the neck and down the back, and connects with nerves to the rest of the body.

The spine is made up of 33 bones called vertebrae (singular: vertebra) stacked one on top of another to form a column. The 7 bones in the neck are known as cervical vertebrae. Between the bones are disces of gristle (cartilage) known as interverbral discs. The sides of the bones are linked by facet joints. Many ligaments and muscles are attached to the apine and fan out from the neck to the shoulder blades and back. The muscles control movements of your head. The spine protects the spinal cord from outside damage while still allowing you to move your head in any direction.

At the level of each dics, nerve roots branch out from the spinal cord passing through an opening in the side of the spine. The nerve roots in the neck join to form the nerve trunks that run into the arms. Impulses travel along these nerves, sending sensations such as touch and pain to the brain and massages from the brain to the muscles.

the vertebral artery carries blood from the heart to the brain. It runs inside the bones of the spine and supplies the part of the brain that controls your balance.

How 3 Foods Fight Allergies

Here’s how the anti-inflammatory properties of some typical foods on the Mediterranean diet protect against allergies.

• Nuts. These are a great source of magnesium and vitamin E. Studies show that magnesium helps increase lung function and may also protect against wheezing in patients with asthma, which causes inflammation of the lungs. Vitamin E is an immune booster and has been shown to reduce the risk of upper respiratory infections, especially the common cold. As an antioxidant, Vitamin E protects the body from damaging free radicals. Free radicals can cause oxidative tissue damage, which triggers inflammation and problems like allergies and asthma.
• Apples, Oranges, and Tomatoes. These three fruits are super sources of another antioxidant, vitamin C. Researchers found that they gave protection against allergies and asthma in the Crete diet study. This is important because nearly half of people with asthma also have allergies.
• Grapes. The skins of red grapes in particular are filled with antioxidants and resveratrol, which reduces inflammation in the body. The Crete diet study found that grapes gave protection against both allergies and wheezing.