If you suffer from any form of chronic pain, sometimes, no matter how much your medication helps you just tend to get sick of it especially if you’ve been on it for a while. What many people don’t know is that it hardly takes one pill for you to feel even remotely better. You actually need to make a lot of adjustments in your lifestyle to improve your condition and lessen your pain.
Aside from what you do outside your body, what you put inside your body can either make you feel better or worse. So take your diet seriously. Include more anti-inflammatory foods like leafy greens, healthy fats like olive oil and coconut oil, clean and lean proteins, and fermented foods that contain probiotics. Drink bone broth or use protein powder from bone broth. Add antioxidant-packed herbs and spices to your meals. Limit or avoid excess sugar, hydrogenated oils (soybean oil, cottonseed oil, even canola oil), processed/refined grains, flour products, synthetic additives, processed meats and fast food. Want to know what other foods can help you manage your pain? Dig in and learn all about them!
1. Ginger
Drinking ginger tea not only helps because it helps warm your body, it also eases the pain and even helps with nausea. In fact, a lot of people drink it for their aching joints as well as menstrual cramps. But also because some of the herbs may act as estrogens, ask your doctor first before using one, especially if you have a history of a hormone-related cancer or take blood-thinning drugs.
2. Blueberries
Blueberries are not just yummy snacks, they also pack a lot of vitamins as well as help lessen pain and fight inflammation. It would be great if you have access to fresh berries, but if not or it’s not in season, frozen ones work too. Other fruits with similar soothing effects, antioxidants and polyphenols are strawberries and oranges.
3. Pumpkin Seeds
If you’re looking for a snack type of food that is rich in magnesium, pepitas are great for that. Why magnesium? Well, it has been found that magnesium is a mineral that is very effective in fighting pain like migraine. In fact, it may even help prevent and treat osteoporosis since magnesium is an essential mineral for bone formation and utilizing calcium. Moreover, you can also get magnesium from foods like avocado, spinach, banana, black beans, almonds, cashews, beans and many more. So try to incorporate those into your diet.
4. Salmon
A good source of vitamin B5 are foods like avocado, sunflower seeds, eggs, salmon and lentils. Eating more of these foods is not only going to guarantee you to be healthier but it can also specifically decrease joint pains, enhance muscle strength, and lessen symptoms that come with muscle or joint fatigue. This is why if you’re suffering from heel spurs, it would be good if you go out of your way to search foods that are high in vitamin B5 and include them in your daily meals.
5. Turmeric
Studies have found that people with rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis found relief and improvement with their condition by taking supplements of curcumin. They say they could walk better without experiencing usual side effects that come with medications. That’s because the compound in turmeric, which also gives the curry its bright orange-yellow color, actually affect several processes in your body including inflammation. Black pepper can help your body absorb it, so try a blend of the spices, steeped with ginger and honey into a tea.
6. Tart Cherries
In one study, runners who drank tart cherry juice starting 7 days before a race and on race day (12 ounces, twice daily) had significantly less muscle pain than a group who swigged a similar-tasting beverage with no natural juice. It could be from the antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds in the fruit.
7. Virgin Olive Oil
Do you get that peppery tingle in the back of your throat whenever you eat something with virgin olive oil? That’s oleocanthal which is a compound that works like ibuprofen. Aside from that, your joints will slide smoother which as a result protects cartilage from breaking down because of the lubricin found in extra-virgin olive oil. It might help people with osteoarthritis. To get the most out of it, it’s best to cook with olive oil in lower temperature (less than 410 degrees) so you don’t lose any of its many benefits.
8. Chili Pepper
Capsaicin creams is a topical cream that you apply on affected areas that can relieve muscle or joint pain. Though it works, you may have to keep reapplying because the effect is temporary. Though, compared to oral pain medication, you’re better off with a cream that offers the same temporary relief but won’t affect your liver in the long run. Just know that this is the active ingredient in chili peppers that make them hot, so expect heat sensation when applied.
So it’s no surprise that eating chili peppers helps alleviate pain too since the “burn” that you feel after eating them tricks your brain into releasing endorphins, which block pain signals.
9. Mint
While some scents can worsen migraine pain, there are others that help soothe it too. Peppermint diluted in a diffuser or washcloth is a good idea. You may also find that peppermint oil can relieve painful cramps, gas and bloating which are all signs of irritable bowel syndrome. Try drinking peppermint tea whenever you have an upset stomach instead of taking some kind of a pill. In early research, Brazilian mint tea (made from the plant Hyptnis crenata) has been as effective as a prescription painkiller.
10. Red Wine
Early research suggests a compound in the skin of red grapes, called resveratrol, could ease the disk swelling that can lead to back pain. But don't drink that whole bottle for your stiff bones yet. (Women, stick to one glass; men can have two.) While resveratrol is promising, we need more studies to come up with a treatment.