Cut Your Pain in Half with these 2 Simple Steps
Kristy Hall, MS, RNCP, ROHP
Living Well Nutrition, LLC
1435 29th Street, Loveland, CO 80538
970-685-8531
Cut Your Pain in Half with these 2 Simple Steps
Copyright © 2017 Kristy Hall, MS, RNCP, ROHP, Living Well Nutrition, LLC. All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced mechanically, electronically, or by any other means, including photocopying, without written permission of the author. It is illegal to copy this publication, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission from the author.
Kristy Hall, MS, RNCP, ROHP
Board Certified, Master of Science in Holistic Nutrition
Living Well Nutrition, LLC
1435 29th Street
Loveland, Colorado 80538
970-685-8531
Kristy@LivingWellNutrition.com
http://www. LivingWellNutrition.com
Medical Disclaimer
The statements within this publication have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This publication is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. If you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or have a medical condition, consult your physician before following these guidelines.
Limits of Liability and Disclaimer of Warranty
All information in this publication has been carefully researched and checked for factual accuracy. However, the authors and publishers make no warranty, express or implied, that the information contained herein is appropriate for every individual, situation or purpose, and assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. The reader assumes the risk and full responsibility for all actions, and the authors will not be held responsible for any loss or damage, whether consequential, incidental, special or otherwise that may result from the information presented in this publication.
I have relied on my own experience as well as many different sources for this publication, and we have done our best to check facts and to give credit where it is due. In the event that any material is incorrect or has been used without proper permissions, please contact us so that the oversight can be corrected.
Cut Your Pain in Half with these 2 Simple Steps
Pain is very complex. There are so many components and causes of pain that it may seem impossible to overcome. Rest assured, there are many things that you can do to dramatically cut your pain—in half or even more! After reading this report you will have with at least 2 concrete things that you can do to start reducing your pain today.
What is the Cause of Your Pain?
Pain can originate from a car accident, sports injury, or a fall. Pain can be caused by repetitive motions. This type of pain may be acute and heal or not resolve and become chronic. There are many types of pain because pain is a symptom…it is the body’s way of telling us that something is wrong.
What kind of pain do you have? Do you know how and when it started? Not everyone knows where their pain came from. While you can get natural pain relief no matter the cause of your pain, knowledge is power, and we often see the best results when we know the cause. But if you don’t know what is the original cause of your pain, don’t lose hope—you can still take simple steps to get some relief.
My Personal Experience with Chronic Pain
I experienced pain every day for close to 20 years. I had a bad horseback riding accident when I was a teenager that left me unconscious. That was probably the start of the neck pain, but I didn’t really connect the dots until years later.
For years, I went to weekly or twice weekly chiropractic and massage appointments trying to escape pain. I took Motrin, Advil, or Tylenol on a regular basis. Pain, for me, had become a lifestyle.
Several years later, after a cross-country move and major life changes, the pain I had been feeling for well over a decade became much worse and came with a daily dose of fatigue that left me napping once, twice, up to three times in a day. I had always been full of energy, but I could hardly function. Professionals began mentioning the possibility of fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue.
At this point, I decided to take my health into my own hands. I decided to pursue a master’s degree in Holistic Nutrition. This is when I learned more about health, pain, and natural pain relief. Now I know what it takes to cut our pain without relying on pain relievers as I had.
Common Pain Medications that Can Make Our Lives Worse
When we suffer from pain what we want is quick relief. That is where medications come in. The intention of taking any medication is to help us get through our day, and allow us to work and care for our family.
There are two important things to keep in mind when you decide to take medications for pain.
First, while these medications can help relieve our pain—the symptom—they do not address the condition that is the underlying cause of our pain. Second, medications, even over-the-counter (OTC) meds, can also leave us with unwanted side effects.
Because caffeine can help speed the pain reliever through our bloodstream, some medications, including some aspirins, contain caffeine. Did you know that these medications can actually cause “rebound headaches”1—that are every bit as painful as the original?
To reduce the chance of rebound headaches, these medications should be taken no more than three times per week. Caffeinated beverages, such as coffee, tea, and sodas, should also be avoided while taking these medications. Unfortunately, for most of us, three times a week is not close to being enough to keep us out of pain. That is why we end up trying other medications.
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, NSAIDS, are another OTC medication that we commonly use to combat our pain. Unfortunately, they can wreak havoc on our stomachs, kidneys, and liver2. Other side effects include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, decreased appetite, rash, dizziness, headache, and drowsiness.
A full 1/3 of patients using NSAIDs will experience some negative side effects3. Up to 50% of patients are unable to tolerate them, with 15% of patients who use them long-term developing an ulcer. The elderly, individuals with a certain type of arthritis, those taking steroid-containing medications (for example, prednisone), and individuals with a prior history of ulcers are at even higher risk.
By now, I hope you are seeing the benefit of natural pain relief, but there is even more!
Another risk that traditional medical doctors don’t mention is the risk of a leaky gut. Inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract may result in a leaky gut. A leaky gut allows partially digested food particles through the cellular junctions resulting in an elevated immune response. Left unchecked, this condition can lead to serious health issues.
So “safe” OTC medications can lead to some serious consequences, but when we are in pain, it may seem like taking that risk is worth it. And what about the people who cannot tolerate things like aspirin, ibuprofen, or acetaminophen?
Other Meds That Can Cause or Increase Our Pain
Opioids are another class of drugs used to treat pain. Opioids have a place in medical care, as most drugs do, but being judicious in their use is wise.
Not only are opioids addictive, but they may end up sensitizing the nervous system resulting in feeling pain more acutely. The side effects of dizziness, nausea, and vomiting can make continuing the opioids difficult. Other side-effects of this class of drugs includes delayed gastric emptying, constipation, physical and emotional addiction, immunologic and hormonal dysfunction, muscle rigidity and involuntary muscle movements.4
Chemotherapy drugs may result in painful nerve damage in the form of neuropathy. Few people will argue the life-saving potential of chemotherapy when faced with cancer, but most would rather live without neuropathy.
Some medications are prescribed to help with a medical condition unrelated to pain, but the medication itself can result in pain for the patient. For example, statins which are commonly prescribed in the United States to treat high cholesterol, can result in serious side effects, including chronic muscle pain, weakness, digestive problems, mental fogginess, and Type 2 Diabetes.5
You should not stop taking your statins or other prescribed medications without first consulting with your physician. If you are experiencing any of these side effects, please let your doctor know, and perhaps your medication can be changed or the dosage altered.
A Better Way to Address Chronic Pain
Most medical professionals are unaware of the effect of the Standard American Diet on inflammation and pain in the body, but after reading this special report, you will have enough information to start reducing your pain today.
This isn’t meant to undermine your confidence in your physician or to find fault with doctors. The truth is, they just don’t learn about nutrition in medical school! They are taught how to treat illnesses primarily through medications and surgeries.
As a board-certified nutritionist, I can assure you that much of your pain can be reduced with a few simple changes to your diet.
I will start with the biggest bang for your pain, but first, I will explain why this works so you’ll be armed with critical information. It will help you know how pain mechanisms work and how you can lower your pain through targeted diet changes.
We eat fat. Our body uses this fat to create things in our bodies, such as the walls in our cells, which are made of phospholipids.
When we have an injury or illness, those underlying conditions that cause pain, enzymes take some of those phospholipids and change them in one of 2 ways.
The first change is through the enzyme cyclooxygenase or COX oxidation. This oxidative pathway leads to thromboxanes, prostaglandins, and prostacyclins. The second is through the enzyme lipoxygenase. This oxidative pathway leads to leukotrienes. Once oxidized, these lipids are metabolized further to make a series. These series are called eicosanoids, and they serve as signaling molecules or communicators in the body.
The type, or series, of eicosanoids in your body depends in large part on what you eat. This is important to remember because there are three series, or pathways, that the lipids feed: high inflammatory, less inflammatory, and low inflammatory.
The bottom line is that inflammation is the main cause of pain—no matter the root condition. The more of the inflammatory fats you eat, the more inflammation and pain you experience. The more of the anti-inflammatory fats you eat, the less inflammation and pain you experience.
Think of it like this. You want to build a grey stone house but have red bricks shipped to the build site. When the general contractor is finished with your house, you will have a red brick house. If you complain that you didn’t get the grey stone house you wanted, the GC is simply going to tell you that s/he used what you provided. No matter how hard the GC tries, a grey stone house cannot be built from red bricks.
The same is true for the fats that you eat. You can’t reduce your inflammation by eating more highly inflammatory foods.
Unfortunately, the standard American diet is filled with highly inflammatory foods.
The good news is that you can make simple changes to your diet and start experiencing less pain and inflammation. Of course, to do that you have to know what foods to eat and which foods to avoid.
STEP ONE–FOODS TO AVOID
High inflammatory signaling eicosanoids come from the vegetable oils we eat, such as those made from corn or soybeans. Most vegetable oil used for cooking has been processed at high heat under great pressure resulting in a rancid oil. It is bleached and deodorized, so you can’t smell the rancidity. Additionally, in restaurants, oil is used over and over, becoming even more inflammatory and damaging.
We can also consume inflammatory fats from commercially raised meat and poultry. These are omega-6 fats called arachidonic acid.
STEP TWO–FOODS and OILS TO EAT
Less inflammatory fat can come from walnuts, almonds, flax, and extra virgin olive oil. These oils have omega 3, 6, and 9 fats. You never want to cook with these fats. The only exception is very low cooking with extra virgin olive oil. (Higher-fat cooking should only be done with butter, avocado, grapeseed, coconut, or rice bran oil.) When buying oil, be sure to buy organic, cold-pressed oils sold in dark glass bottles and store them away from heat. I also suggest buying in small quantities to ensure the freshest oils.
We get anti-inflammatory fats from eating fish and animals raised in their natural environment, such as grass-fed and finished beef. These foods are high in omega-3 fats.
Summary
This is the diet component of the protocol that I followed to reduce my pain by half successfully. I share this with you because I would like to see your pain drop in half as well. However, there are some cautions that I must share with you. While there are supplements you can take to more quickly and efficiently reduce your pain, they must be taken under the direction of a professional trained in orthomolecular health. More importantly, dietary changes must come first for you to experience lasting pain relief. Following my two steps above will correct your fatty acid balance and reduce your pain.
There are many other dietary approaches you can employ to simply and naturally reduce your pain. This is step one. Once you have had success with step one, I know you will want to continue on your path to cutting your pain in half and half again, as I did.
There are foods that actually deplete your body of nutrition. These nutrient depleters are as unique as you are. What they have in common is they contribute directly to your pain. Removing these foods is key to your success.
Additionally, there are certain key nutrients that need to be maximized to reduce or eliminate pain. Studies show that insufficient nutrient levels contribute to pain.
Beyond these, the contributors to pain include disrupted hormone levels and toxicity issues.
Fortunately, there are tests that we can run that will identify what is contributing to your inflammation and pain. I can then tailor a program that is individually suited to your body and lifestyle.
When you are ready to reduce your pain even more, call me. I’d be happy to show you the way to finally say goodbye to the pain that has been holding you back from living the life you deserve.
RESOURCES
1 Rebound Headaches: http://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases_conditions/hic_Overview_of_Headaches_in_Adults/hic_Rebound_Headaches
2 Jay W. Marks, MD and Omudhome Ogbru, PharmD
3 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2683027
4 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18443635
5 http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/high-blood-cholesterol/in-depth/statin-side-effects/art-20046013
6 http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/supplement/gammalinolenic-acid
