Pain? There Are Solutions Better Than Drugs

There are things you can do to get pain under control—and they don’t involve drugs! All drugs have side effects and often make matters worse.

  1. NSAIDs, the drugs commonly used for pain, cause more problems than they solve. Taking them for a couple of days is alright. Regular use, however, causes ulcers, irritation of the GI tract, tissue destruction (they destroy cartilage—making them a very BAD idea to use for arthritis). They have been linked to heart failure, kidney failure, and high blood pressure. Over time, they increase inflammation, which is why they become less effective the more you use them1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11.
  2. Diet can either increase inflammation, or it can decrease inflammation. Brightly colored produce, nuts, and seeds all contain substances (polyphenols and carotenoids) that fight inflammation12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22. Chemical additives, sugar, grains, and animal fat all increase inflammation. You don’t need to be vegan, but 75% of your diet should be fresh produce.
  3. Pancreatic enzymes can reduce inflammation. When taken with food, they help digestion. Many studies show that they reduce pain and inflammation when taken on an empty stomach, and often out-perform drugs23,24,25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32.
  4. Chiropractors excel at getting pain under control without drugs–especially when there is a mechanical cause. People think of chiropractors as “bone” doctors–they are really doctors of the nervous system.

A Simple Strategy for Pain Control

  1. Roadmap to Health Diet: This diet will reduce inflammation. We have menu plans and recipes for you. Click here to see the diet.
  2. Pancreatic Enzymes: Take 2, 2x/ on an empty stomach. The brand you choose should have 25 mg of chymotrypsin, according to Dr. Harry Eidenier (he’s right). 8x Pancreatin from Zorex fills the bill, but they will not sell to you. They sell only to physicians (another reason to find a health care practitioner to help you). Do not despair–other natural substances have been shown to reduce inflammation. See “Natural Substances for Pain” below.
  3. Find a good chiropractor.

Natural Substances for Pain

  • Curcumin has been extensively studied [33-44] and is a powerful natural anti-inflammatory.
  • MSM has also been well studied [45-54] reduces inflammation and is especially good for people with arthritis.
  • Omega-3 fatty acids have also been shown to reduce inflammation [46-48].

This is not the entire list. These supplements are included to give you some viable options.

Selected References

  1. (Pol Arch Med Wewn 2014;124(11):628-34). Our prescription drugs kill us in large numbers
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  4. Archives of Internal Medicine (February 11, 2002;162:265-270). Association of Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs With First Occurrence of Heart Failure and With Relapsing Heart Failure
  5. Arch Intern Med. 1996 Jul 22;156(14):1530-6. Gastrointestinal tract complications of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug treatment in rheumatoid arthritis. A prospective observational cohort study
  6. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research (June, 2002 17:963). Cyclo-oxygenase 2 function is essential for bone fracture healing
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  8. Am J Med . 2009 Sep;122(9):836-42. Do NSAIDs affect longitudinal changes in knee cartilage volume and knee cartilage defects in older adults?
  9. Biochem Pharmacol 1991 May 1;41(9):1375-84. Comparison of the effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) on proteoglycan synthesis by articular cartilage explant and chondrocyte monolayer cultures
  10. Br J Rheumatol . 1992;31 Suppl 1:13-7. Effect of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) on glycosyltransferase activity from human osteoarthritic cartilage
  11. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2014 Dec;34(12):2637-43 T-cell profile in adipose tissue is associated with insulin resistance and systemic inflammation in humans
  12. Br J Nutr. 2011 Sep;106(6):913-22 Strawberry anthocyanin and its association with postprandial inflammation and insulin
  13. J Nutr. 2015 Jul;145(7):1459-63. Supplementation of the Pure Flavonoids Epicatechin and Quercetin Affects Some Biomarkers of Endothelial Dysfunction and Inflammation in (Pre)Hypertensive Adults: A Randomized Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Crossover Trial
  14. Food Chem. 2020 Apr 25;310:125797 Anthocyanin-rich extract from purple potatoes decreases postprandial glycemic response and affects inflammation markers in healthy men
  15. Nutr Rev. 2019 Jun 22:nuz018 Impact of anthocyanin-rich whole fruit consumption on exercise-induced oxidative stress and inflammation: a systematic review and meta-analysis
  16. Int J Mol Sci. 2018 Mar 12;19(3):816. Anthocyanin-Rich Extract from Red Chinese Cabbage Alleviates Vascular Inflammation in Endothelial Cells and Apo E -/- Mice
  17. PLoS One. 2018 Apr 11;13(4):e0195502 The flavonoid compound apigenin prevents colonic inflammation and motor dysfunctions associated with high fat diet-induced obesity
  18. Nutr Diabetes. 2017 May 15;7(5):e276 Flavonoid intake is inversely associated with obesity and C-reactive protein, a marker for inflammation, in US adults
  19. J Ethnopharmacol. 2013 Aug 26;149(1):169-75 The root barks of Morus alba and the flavonoid constituents inhibit airway inflammation
  20. Nutr Res. 2018 Apr;52:98-104 A diet high in carotenoid-rich vegetables and fruits favorably impacts inflammation status by increasing plasma concentrations of IFN-α2 and decreasing MIP-1β and TNF-α in healthy individuals during a controlled feeding trial
  21. Br J Nutr. 2014 Oct 28;112(8):1341-52 Patterns of dietary intake and serum carotenoid and tocopherol status are associated with biomarkers of chronic low-grade systemic inflammation and cardiovascular risk
  22. J Perinatol. 2012 Jun;32(6):418-24 Cerebrospinal fluid levels of inflammation, oxidative stress and NAD+ are linked to differences in plasma carotenoid concentrations
  23. Antibiot Khimioter. 2012;57(9-10):25-7, 29-31 [Impact of exogenous proteolytic enzymes on immunogenesis in patients with urogenital infections]
  24. Br J Obstet Gynaecol. 1983 Jul;90(7):650-3 Polyglycolic acid and catgut sutures, with and without oral proteolytic enzymes, in the healing of episiotomies
  25. Aesthetic Plast Surg. Jan-Feb 1999;23(1):41-4. Orally administered proteases in aesthetic surgery
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