Is Degenerative Disc Disease Really a Disease: How It Works, Explained Simply

Video Transcript

Degenerative disc disease has a frightening name. But it isn't really a disease at all. It's the natural aging of the discs, the cushions between your vertebrae, and it happens to almost everyone in time. A young disc is plump and full of water. Over the years, it slowly loses water and height and develops small cracks. As it flattens, the joints behind it sit a little closer together and take on more of the load. Sometimes tiny nerves grow into the worn disc, which is why a degenerated disc can itself ache. But here is what matters most. These changes appear on the scans of huge numbers of people who feel perfectly fine. Degenerative disc disease is not a spine that is crumbling, and it is not on a path to inevitable surgery. For most people it's managed with movement, strengthening, and time, easing the symptoms when they flare. This video is for general education only. It is not medical advice. Ask your doctor what's right for you.