Table of contents:
- Causes of neuropathy (peripheral nerve damage)
- 1. Diabetes
- 2. Injuries and trauma
- 3. Vitamin B deficiency
- 4. Autoimmune disease
- 5. Chemotherapy side effects
- 6. Alcohol addiction
- Tips for keeping nerves healthy
Peripheral neuropathy is a condition when there is damage to your peripheral nerves. Peripheral nerve disorders cause quite disturbing symptoms. For example numbness, tingling sensations, and feeling weak and weak throughout the day.
So that you can reduce the risk of peripheral nerve problems, identify what causes the damage and how to keep the peripheral nerves healthy.
Causes of neuropathy (peripheral nerve damage)
There are many things that can increase your risk of developing peripheral nerve damage. As reported from the siteNational Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, injuries, diabetes, kidney problems, and autoimmune diseases can make you more susceptible to this one condition.
So, are you at risk for neuropathy? Come on, check out what the risk factors are below.
1. Diabetes
Peripheral nerve damage is a chronic complication of diabetes. Nearly half of people with diabetes experience this problem.
High levels of sugar in the body cause nerve damage, giving rise to several symptoms in the form of tingling, numbness, and pain. So, those of you who have diabetes or have a family history of diabetes are also more likely to experience neuropathy.
2. Injuries and trauma
Injury from a driving accident or falling during sports can stretch, compress, or damage nerve cells. In addition, complications from fractures can put pressure on the nerves, giving rise to various symptoms associated with peripheral nerve damage.
Therefore, people in high-risk professions such as athletes and drivers are more at risk of developing peripheral nerve damage.
3. Vitamin B deficiency
Not only injury, deficiency of B vitamins, especially B1, B6, and B12, is one of the causes of peripheral nerve damage.
B1, B6, and B12 are vitamins that play a role in the process of cell metabolism and the maintenance of the human nervous system. Generally, deficiency of these two vitamins often occurs in the elderly, but young people can also experience it.
Every day, people over 14 years of age need vitamin B1 as much as 1.3 mg, vitamin B6 as much as 1.2 mg, and vitamin B12 as much as 2.4 mcg to maintain nerve health. Some sources of B vitamins are fish, meat, eggs, or vitamin supplements.
4. Autoimmune disease
Autoimmune disease is a disorder of the immune system that attacks nerve cells in a person's body tissues. One of the diseases that causes this disorder is Guillain-Barre syndrome, which is a rare condition when a person's immune system attacks its own peripheral nerves.
5. Chemotherapy side effects
Peripheral nerve damage turned out to be one of the side effects of chemotherapy experienced by cancer patients. However, only about 30 to 40 percent of chemotherapy patients experience this. The reason is, only certain chemotherapy can cause nervous disorders.
Those of you who are undergoing radiation therapy are also prone to experiencing similar problems. These side effects will usually appear several months to several years after treatment is carried out.
6. Alcohol addiction
Disorders of the peripheral nerves due to alcoholism are commonly referred to as alcoholic neuropathy. This condition is most likely caused by the body taking alcohol more than the limit. Consumption of alcohol can lead to free radical damage to nerves so that nerves are prone to damage.
Tips for keeping nerves healthy
So, are you classified as at risk for peripheral nerve damage? Take it easy, damage to the peripheral nerves can be prevented by maintaining the health of your nerve tissue. You do this by maintaining a healthy lifestyle, reducing alcohol consumption, and consuming neurotropic vitamins.
Neurotropic vitamins are a combination of vitamin B1 (thiamine), vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), and vitamin B12 (cobalamin). All three have an important role in the process of metabolism and regeneration of your nervous system.
Peripheral nerve damage can indeed be caused by various things. However, there is nothing wrong with maintaining your health by changing your lifestyle to reduce the risk of problems with this nerve tissue and regularly taking neurotropic vitamins.
