Fight pain with food!

“Let food be your medicine and let medicine be your food”, Hippocrates.

If you are dealing with pain and inflammation in your body there are a number of foods that can help reduce pain as well as inflammation. 

Pineapple- Pineapple contains bromelain, a powerful anti-inflammatory enzyme that helps the body heal by breaking down inflammatory agents.  Use fresh pineapple and consume it alone for maximum benefit. Works great along with ginger as a juice for sore throats. 

Ginger– Ginger is another powerful anti-inflammatory that works by blocking COX enzymes.  This is the same mechanism as OTC and prescription pain medication.  Ginger is also a great anti-nasueant.  Ginger root can be peeled and boiled for 10 minutes in water and consumed as a potent tea.

Tumeric – Tumeric is a spice that contains curcumin, a powerful anti-inflammatory and pain reducer that has long been used in the Indian and China and also has great clinic research behind it.  It’s also great for  liver detoxification.

Cold water fish– Cold water fish like mackerel, salmon, cod, halibut sardines and anchovies offer omega-3 fatty acids, EPA and DHA which are well known to promote anti-inflammatory pathways and support the immune system.  For vegans, chia seeds, and ground flax seeds offer similar benefits through different chemicals.

Adding these foods to your diet on a regular basis can help control low level pain and inflammation in the body.

Remember that if you are experiencing prolonged pain or inflammation this is your body trying to tell you that something is not right.  You need to address the rest of your diet for inflammatory foods and allergens as well as look at the rest of your lifestyle to see what else might be going wrong.