Muscle

Muscle is the powerhouse which allows us to move in the way we direct with our brains. Without muscle we would just be a bag of bones and jelly slopping on the floor. We need to create a certain tension in muscle and control it even to stand still. Movement is an incredibly complicated process, to control my fingers as I type this, a multitude if connections have to be made in the brain and transmitted down the nerves to the muscles in the neck, back, shoulders, elbows, wrists and fingers to allow me to move all these joints in a certain way and type accurately with speed, precision and correct spelling (hopefully). So muscle provides power for movement, what then happens when a muscle is strained or torn? A complex process is initiated we know as healing and this is broken into specific stages which have overlapping timescales depending on the severity of the injury, the immediate aftercare and the body type of the person involved. Initially the trauma causes release of chemicals which tell the brain that damage has been caused and we feel pain! Next blood rushes to the area to fill any break in tissue and a clot forms as a barrier to infection. At this stage if swelling is not reduced then further damage occurs from excess pressure on already damaged tissues and those adjacent. Immediately after trauma is the time to apply R.I.C.E (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation). Of all these Compression is the most relevant at inital stages in relation to swelling and can reduce secondary tissue trauma immensely. Ice can be applied during this and after as an ongoing treatment. Due to the fact that muscle is pumped full of blood healing times are much shorter than for most other tissues because plenty of nutrition is available to fuel the healing process. The further stages of healing are specialising of tissue type to muscle then scar formation. If the correct directional stresses are placed on the scar while it is healing then the new tissue will be much stronger and able to withstand stretching without damage. A final point to make would be that muscle is predominantly made of protein and if the diet can tend towards this during healing with products which contain plenty of amino acids (the building blocks of protein) such as oily fish, cottage cheese, eggs, lean meat ,quinoa,(a cous cous like grain), then this will aid the production of good quality healing muscle tissue. These should also be eaten as part of a balanced diet!