Is Your Back Pain due to Spinal Stenosis Causing Memory Problems? The Brain-Spine Connection Explained

the constant search for relief. But here's something you might not have thought about: your back pain could be causing more than just your physical comfort. It might actually be affecting your brain function.

It’d not just your imagination if you've felt mentally foggy on days when your back pain flares up. A new study looking at older adults across the United States uncovered a striking link: people with spinal pain were significantly more likely to notice cognitive difficulties. (1) This isn't just about being troubled by pain—there appears to be a real connection between spinal health and how well your brain works.

Think about it: your spine isn't only a structural support system. It houses your central nervous system, the communication path between your brain and body. When that system is compromised by conditions like spinal stenosis, the effects can reach farther than your spine.

Before you get too worried, there's hopful news: research shows some surprisingly simple solutions might make a real difference. Studies have shown that daily multivitamin supplementation can support cognitive function in older adults. One study found that elderly women taking a combined multivitamin, mineral, and herbal supplement for just 16 weeks reported measurable memory improvements. (2) Similar research in older men showed that comprehensive nutritional supplementation positively impacted both cognition and blood biomarkers. (3)

While these studies didn't focus exclusively on back pain sufferers, they suggest that assisting your body nutritionally could provide cognitive benefits—potentially offsetting some of the mental fog that comes with chronic pain.

Now, this is where your chiropractor's care can help. If your spine problems are impacting your thinking, fixing the spine issue should help your brain too, right? A documented case of an 80-year-old woman with chronic low back pain described significant improvement through specialized chiropractic techniques, particularly modified Cox® Technic flexion distraction decompression performed in a gentle, side-lying position. (4) By reducing chronic spinal pain, chiropractic spinal manipulation may boost your whole system—including your brain.

If you're living with back pain and noticing that your memory or focus isn't what it used to be, it doesn't have to be your new normal. Think about addressing it two ways: begin with a quality daily multivitamin to sustain your nutritional foundation, and talk with your your chiropractor at Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office about how spinal manipulation helps get at the root causes of your discomfort. Your back—and your brain—will thank you.

Listen to this PODCAST with Dr.  Cameron McConville  on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he illustrates relieving, gentle care of spinal stenosis with The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management.