Skip to content

Top Navigation

Health.com Health.com
  • Health Conditions A-Z
  • News
  • Coronavirus
  • Diet & Nutrition
  • Fitness
  • Beauty
  • Mind & Body
  • Lifestyle
  • Weight Loss
  • Newsletter
  • Promo

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences this link opens in a new tab
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Health.com

Health.com Health.com
  • Explore

    Explore

    • Is Your Doctor Gaslighting You? Here's What to Do

      How to handle a physician who doubts or dismisses your symptoms. Read More Next
    • 9 Signs It's More Serious Than the Common Cold

      Doctors explain how to tell if you have a head cold or something more serious that requires medical attention, such as the flu, strep throat, meningitis, or mono. Read More Next
    • How Your Period Changes During Your 20s, 30s, and 40s

      From easier cramps to a heavier flow, here's a guide on what to expect decade by decade. Read More Next
  • Health Conditions A-Z

    Health Conditions A-Z

    See all Health Conditions A-Z

    12 Anxiety Symptoms That Might Point to a Disorder

    The symptoms of anxiety can be hard to detect. Here are the ones you need to pay attention to, and how to know if you may have an anxiety disorder.
    • Allergies
    • Anxiety
    • Birth Control
    • Breast Cancer
    • Coronavirus
    • Chronic Pain
    • Cold, Flu, and Sinus
    • Depression
    • Digestive Health
    • Diabetes (Type 2)
    • Eczema
    • Eye Health
    • Fibromyalgia
    • Heart Disease
    • Headaches and Migraines
    • Oral Health
    • Pregnancy
    • Psoriasis
    • Sexual Health
    • Skin Conditions
    • Sleep
    • Thyroid
  • News

    News

    See all News

    Shannen Doherty Reveals Stage 4 Breast Cancer Diagnosis—Here's What It Means

    "I'm petrified," the actress said when she shared the news that her breast cancer came back. Here's why a stage 4 breast cancer diagnosis can be so frightening.
    • Celebrities
  • Coronavirus
  • Diet & Nutrition

    Diet & Nutrition

    The Best (and Worst) Diets of 2020, According to Experts

    FYI: The keto diet is not number one.
    • Food
    • Nutrition
    • Vitamins and Supplements
    • Groceries
    • Restaurants
    • Diets
    • Keto Diet
    • Mediterranean Diet
    • Whole30
    • Recipes
  • Fitness

    Fitness

    See all Fitness

    10 Moves for a Cardio Workout at Home—No Equipment Required

    Stay in your living room and still spike your heart rate.
    • Cardio Workouts
    • Strength Training
    • Yoga
    • Ab Workouts
    • Arm Workouts
    • Leg Workouts
    • Butt Workouts
    • Fitness Gear
  • Beauty

    Beauty

    See all Beauty

    These 13 Women Prove Every Body Is a Bikini Body

    We're loving their inspirational, body-positive messages.
    • Skincare
    • Makeup
    • Hair
    • Nails
  • Mind & Body

    Mind & Body

    See all Mind & Body

    Why Do People Lie? We Asked an Expert

    Here's the truth about lying.
    • Body Positivity
    • Self-Care
    • Misdiagnosed
    • Invisible Illness
    • LGBTQ+ Health
    • Health Diversity and Inclusion
    • Resolution Reboot
  • Lifestyle

    Lifestyle

    20 Things You Should Throw Away for Better Health

    Clean out expired products and clutter to make way for a healthier you.
    • Healthy Home
    • Pets
    • Family
    • Relationships
    • Style
    • Holidays
    • Sex
    • Gifts
    • Money
    • Tech
    • Medicare
    • Best Life Now
  • Weight Loss
  • Newsletter
  • Promo

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences this link opens in a new tab
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow us

  1. Home Chevron Right
  2. Chronic Pain Chevron Right
  3. 10 Food Rules for Pain Patients

10 Food Rules for Pain Patients

By Mara Betsch
June 10, 2013
Skip gallery slides
Save Pin
Credit: Istockphoto
Fibromyalgia's symptoms include muscle and tissue pain, fatigue, depression, and sleep disturbances. Although there is little clinical research on fibromyalgia and food, many patients say that following a careful diet can help ease aches and discomfort.
Start Slideshow

1 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

The fibro-food connection

Credit: Getty Images
  • Fibromyalgia is notoriously difficult to treat. Medication tends to reduce muscle pain, fatigue, and other symptoms of the chronic condition by just 30% to 50%. As a result, many patients turn to diet and lifestyle changes for added relief.
  • Learning which foods to avoid is a good place to start, since fibro patients often have food sensitivities that may not show up in food allergy tests. In one survey, 42% reported that certain foods made their pain and stiffness worse.

1 of 12

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

How does food affect pain?

Credit: Getty Images

Experts believe that oversensitive nerve cells in the spinal cord and brain may be involved in the way fibro patients process pain. Certain foods may trigger the release of neurotransmitters that heighten this sensitivity, says Daniel Arkfeld, MD, a rheumatologist at the University of Southern California's Keck School of Medicine.

Although the research on diet and fibromyalgia is limited, experts suggest that the following 10 healthy eating rules can’t hurt, and may help people dealing with chronic pain.

2 of 12

3 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Eat more fresh foods

Credit: Getty Images

Roughly half of fibro patients also suffer from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Eating a diet of fresh foods, devoid of preservatives and additives, may ease fibro symptoms associated with IBS, says Dr. Arkfeld. "Foods that irritate your bowel will trigger the body to send a message to the brain that signals fibromyalgia symptoms," he explains.

Whenever possible, it’s also a good idea to

buy organic food. “Some patients do better avoiding pesticides and chemicals,” says Dr. Arkfeld.

3 of 12

Advertisement

4 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Don't OD on caffeine

Fibromyalgia is believed to be linked to an imbalance of brain chemicals that control mood, and it is often accompanied by unrestful sleep and fatigue. Fibro patients may try to ease fatigue with stimulants like caffeine, but they may end up doing more harm than good in the long run.

“Caffeine is a loan shark for energy. We recommend not using a lot,” says Kent Holtorf, MD, founding medical director of the Fibromyalgia and Fatigue Centers, which are located across the country.

4 of 12

5 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Steer clear of some veggies

Credit: Getty Images

"For joint pains, a lot of people say avoid nightshade vegetables," says Dr. Arkfeld. Normally, veggies are low-cal, healthy options, but the nightshade variety—including tomatoes, potatoes, and eggplants—are believed to aggravate arthritis and pain in some people.

"The thought is that they have components that are neurotoxins," says Dr. Holtorf. "For a small percentage of patients, cutting them out makes a dramatic difference."

5 of 12

6 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Get plenty of omega-3s

Credit: Getty Images

Omega-3 fatty acids, found in salmon and a variety of fish, have been touted as a heart-healthy food, and they may help with pain as well. "The fatty acids are great," says Dr. Holtorf. "They reduce the inflammation and help brain function."

A 2006 survey of arthritis patients found that daily fish oil supplements

reduced pain symptoms in 60% of the patients. Omega-3s have not, however, been tested on fibromyalgia patients specifically.

6 of 12

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Easy on the yeast

Credit: Getty Images

Yeast, along with its partner in crime, gluten, can be found in a variety of baked goods. Consuming yeast may contribute to the growth of yeast fungus in the body, which can add to pain, says Dr. Holtorf.

Fibromyalgia patients may also be more prone to gluten sensitivities. "Celiac disease is seen in a subset of patients. Avoiding [yeast and gluten] can help some patients improve," says Dr. Arkfeld.

7 of 12

8 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Don't eat too much dairy

Credit: Getty Images

Some degree of lactose intolerance affects about 70% of adults worldwide, so it's not surprising that many fibromyalgia patients have trouble digesting dairy products.

In a 1998 study, researchers tested whether blood samples taken from 40 fibromyalgia patients reacted to substances found in various foods; the blood of 25% of the subjects demonstrated an immune response to cow dairy products.

Fibro patients on

vegan diets have also seen their symptoms improve.

8 of 12

9 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Cut back on carbs

Credit: Getty Images

"If I had to choose one particular diet for fibromyalgia patients, I would choose a low-carb, low-sugar diet," says Dr. Holtorf.

"About 90% of fibromyalgia patients have low adrenal functioning," he adds, which affects the metabolism of carbohydrates and may lead to hypoglycemia. These people crave sugar, but they also experience the crash that follows the initial energy high. "If you're hypoglycemic, you want to keep that sugar level as stable as possible. Try

carbs with a mix of protein and fat," says Dr. Arkfeld.

9 of 12

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Ease up on aspartame

Credit: Getty Images

"Getting off [aspartame] can make some pain patients feel much better," says Dr. Holtorf. The artificial sweetener found in diet sodas and many sugar-free sweets is part of a chemical group called excitotoxins, which activate neurons that can increase sensitivity to pain. Though aspartame isn’t dangerous to healthy people when consumed in moderation, it may heighten fibro patients' sensitivity to pain.

Some

artificial sweeteners, most notably sorbitol and xylitol, can trigger IBS as well.

10 of 12

11 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Avoid additives

Credit: Istockphoto

Food additives such as monosodium glutamate (MSG) often cause trouble for pain patients. MSG—a high-sodium flavor enhancer often added to fast food, Chinese food, and processed packaged foods—is a an excitatory neurotransmitter that may stimulate pain receptors; glutamate levels in spinal fluid have been shown to correlate with pain levels in fibromyalgia patients.

A 1995 report commissioned by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration stated that MSG may cause short-term reactions such as

headaches, and a 2007 animal study in the journal Pain suggested that increases in glutamate in muscles may contribute to pain sensitivity.

11 of 12

12 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Say no to junk food

Credit: Istockphoto

The National Fibromyalgia Research Association recommends limiting or eliminating refined sugar, caffeine, fried foods, and highly processed foods—in other words, most fast food, candy, and vending-machine products. In addition to contributing to weight gain, these foods may irritate muscles, disrupt sleep, and compromise the immune system.

Experimenting with an elimination diet and cutting the foods in this slideshow out completely for several weeks—either one at a time or all at once—may help you decide whether they affect your fibromyalgia symptoms.

12 of 12

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Mara Betsch

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 12 The fibro-food connection
2 of 12 How does food affect pain?
3 of 12 Eat more fresh foods
4 of 12 Don't OD on caffeine
5 of 12 Steer clear of some veggies
6 of 12 Get plenty of omega-3s
7 of 12 Easy on the yeast
8 of 12 Don't eat too much dairy
9 of 12 Cut back on carbs
10 of 12 Ease up on aspartame
11 of 12 Avoid additives
12 of 12 Say no to junk food

Share options

Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Login

Health.com

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • About Us
  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Contact us
  • Advertise this link opens in a new tab
  • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
  • Sitemap

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en Español this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Shape this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
  • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
Health.com is part of the Meredith Health Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. All rights reserved. The material in this site is intended to be of general informational use and is not intended to constitute medical advice, probable diagnosis, or recommended treatments. All products and services featured are selected by our editors. Health.com may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.health.com

View image

10 Food Rules for Pain Patients
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.