How Nutrition Can Heal Your Chronic Pain
Marion Hauser, M.S., R.D. Sara Cook, Nutrition and Lifestyle Coach
"Susan" had been living with chronic pain from a foot injury that happened in November of 2002. She was told by a doctor to rest the injured limb until it healed. Because she immobilized her foot for so long, the soft tissue was unable to heal adequately. Now she is living with a chronic pain disorder called RSD. She also experiences high stress, fatigue and low energy, all related to the pain.
RSD, also known as Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy, is a nerve disorder that involves the sympathetic nervous system. RSD is a chronic condition characterized by severe burning pain, changes in bone and skin, excessive sweating, tissue swelling and extreme sensitivity to touch. It is quite possibly one of the worst pain syndromes one can experience.
"Susan" is receiving Prolotherapy, a treatment that stimulates the body to repair the painful areas, at Caring Medical. She was also placed on a strict diet to help her healing process. Our natural medicine doctors put the patient on a Hauser Diet #5, a vegetarian, "Giraffe-like" diet, because her blood pH was extremely alkaline (above normal) which was causing her stress, fatigue, and low energy levels. Having started this new diet, "Susan" reported that she has never had so much increased energy, with an amazing reduction in her fatigue and pain. When she gets off of her diet and eats a lot of protein and not enough vegetables and complex carbohydrates, she starts to feel the terrible pain again; the anxiety increases, and her weight begins to creep up. She was also instructed to take an allergy test which showed that she is allergic to milk. Being allergic to a food can cause your body to not heal properly, which can cause your body fatigue and pain. "Susan" has also been following a casein-free diet, along with Hauser Diet #5. She is so happy to be on the path to recovery. Never underestimate the power of the proper diet for healing!
What causes RSD and chronic pain?
We believe that immobility triggers the arthritic and RSD process. When you develop an injury and then immobilize it, you decrease joint cartilage nourishment. (Cartilage nourishment involves eating the proper foods for repair). When you decrease cartilage nourishment, cartilage damage will form. Once there is cartilage damage, joint bones start colliding which then causes joint deterioration, like arthritis. Arthritis then triggers the adrenaline system of the limb, which then causes RSD
Nutrition plays a vital part in the healing and recovery phases of your injuries. Nutrition is often overlooked, yet it is the vital to the healing process. A lot of people who have pain are seen by so many doctors that can give medication for the pain, but they can never figure out what the underlying cause for the pain is. If you have pain it means that something is weak or injured. In order to strengthen and heal the injured area, your body needs to be provided with the proper nutrients.
What are you putting in your mouth?
The body needs all essential nutrients to grow ligaments, tendons, and to heal any bodily structure. Essential nutrients are amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, and trace elements that are to be consumed in a healthy diet. Most Americans have nutritional deficiencies. We consume a lot of fatty foods, colas, sugar, and simple carbohydrates. These foods and drinks do not have any nutritional value. Eating a load of sugar hampers the immune function for four hours. So, if you are drinking a soda every 4 hours through out the day, your body is never able to heal your connective tissues. These tissues need to be healed to cure your pain.
What our bodies need are dark green vegetables, fruit, nuts, whole grains, protein, and lots of water. Another factor to look at is if you are overweight. Weight loss is a part of curing chronic pain. Stop eating so many simple “junk-food” carbohydrates. The heavier you are, the more weight your ligaments and joints have to support you to keep you up. Your painful areas have to use a lot of energy to support your own weight which is causing you to not be able to heal properly or very fast.
How we can help you
In our opinion, the best way to treat your chronic pain is to give us a call so you can make an appointment to meet with one of our natural medicine doctors. Receiving Prolotherapy, along with nutritional testing can get you on the road to relieving your chronic pain. When you come to visit us, several tests will be likely be conducted, including a Diet Typing and a nutritional history. These tests will determine your blood pH and how well your body oxidizes (or processes) food. The end result of these tests will be to determine what foods your body needs for optimal healing and which Hauser Diet you should be following for optimum health.
Don’t underestimate the power of proper nutrition in your healing! It may be the missing link!
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