Your relationship with the food you eat should not be contentious, but when you have a condition that creates so many unpleasant symptoms like Fibromyalgia, it certainly can be. Here are two great references for you today to prove to you that the food you eat can make a difference in how you feel.
First off, take the nightshade family of vegetables and how they are suspected to cause inflammation (i.e. pain) in people with conditions like Arthritis and Fibromyalgia.
So what are the nightshade vegetables? According to the truth about nightshade vegetables:
Nightshades (a.k.a. nightshade vegetables) are any plant from the family Solanaceae. We are namely interested in two genera: Capsicum and Solanum, or the pepper genus and tomato/eggplant/potato genus respectively. It should also be noted that another genus, Nicotiana (tobacco), is in the nightshade family.
- Tomatoes (including tomatillos and tamarillos)
- Peppers (both hot and sweet peppers, plus paprika, cayenne pepper and Tabasco sauce)
- Potatoes (not sweet potatoes)
- Eggplant
- Ground cherries
- Garden huckleberries and naranjillas
- Pimentos and pepinos
- Tobacco
The second reference comes Dr. Deirdre Rawlings, a naturopath and previous guest on the Health Matters Show. Find a current article on this subject, Managing Fibromyalgia – Food Alert: Foods that Lead to Fibro Flares on her website.
While the complex carbohydrates found in vegetables, grains, and fruits are good for you, the simple sugars found in sodas, candies, icings, and packaged treats can do harm, at least when eaten in excess, or when your system is compromised with conditions, such as fibromyalgia. Sugar contributes to inflammation in your cells and throughout your body and upsets your blood sugar metabolism. This can lead to excess cortisol production which will lead to adrenal fatigue, causing you to easily becoming stressed, fatigued and exhausted, in addition to hormone imbalances, weight gain, mood swings, brain fog, and metabolic imbalances. Excessive or continued disruption by this means can and does lead to fibro-flares.
I hope that these two great sources of information today will help you think about how to combat the pain (and inflammation!) that you’re suffering with by such a simple means as thinking and planning the food that you put in your mouth.
Changing what you eat by intention is a lifestyle adjustment. As patients trying to get well, you and I are called to make that type of adjustment when we suffer with a chronic illness like Fibromyalgia and its pain and (possible) inflammation.
Here’s to your healthy eating success,
Cinda Crawford, host of the Health Matters Show
{ 1 trackback }
{ 0 comments… add one now }