Pain, Inflammation, and Diet

The number one category of over the counter medications purchased in the United States is for the relief of pain. Name brands such as Advil, Tylenol, Aleve, Excedrin, and Bayer Aspirin can be found everywhere.

But why? Because the demand is there! People are in pain, and they want relief, and although medications are convenient and effective, their effects are short lived.

So what’s the real problem - the underlying cause? The answer is inflammation and the fact that we have too much of it in our bodies.

Inflammation

Inflammation destroys lives slowly with an escalating crescendo of more pain and suffering, disease, and infirmity that leads to addiction. Inflammation and pain is an epidemic and a contributing factor to the downfall of our healthcare system and financial ruin of our economy. Inflammation is detrimental for the body, but it’s great for selling prescriptions and over the counter medications.

Believe it or not, YOU are the only solution to your inflammation. The number one cause of excess inflammation in the body is directly related to your diet and your omega 6 to omega 3 ratios. This ratio can be measured from many home test kits and blood labs. I recommend a particular one for my patients which is a blood spot test (a single drop of blood) that we send out to a lab. The results of these tests are shocking and of concern for my patient population and me. Ideally, the ratio should be 2:1 (Omega 6/Omega 3). I usually see a ratio of 10:1 to 20:1 or higher and that hurts.

Elevated Ratio Causes

The reason that most people have such elevated ratios is because of excess omega 6 oil in the diet. Oils such as safflower, sunflower, cottonseed, canola, sesame, soybean, palm fruit, and even olive oil have flooded our foods. Organic foods are no better when it comes to the amount of omega 6 oils we are exposed to. There are more of these oils consumed in higher quantities now than ever before.

In general and to simplify, the fats/oils we eat are categorized as omega 6, arachidonic acid and omega 3. These are the three families of essential, natural fats in food. Each family of these fats once eaten are converted into hormones called prostaglandins 1, 2 and 3 (PG1, PG2, PG3).

• PG1s come from sources of omega six oils such as safflower, corn, sunflower, canola, soybean oil, palm fruit oil, vegetable oils, and olive oil.

• PG2s (arachidonic acid) comes from red meat, dairy, shellfish, eggs, chicken skin, hydrogenated fats, fried foods, and trans fats.

• PG3s (omega 3) come from flaxseed, oily fish, hempseed, walnuts, and pumpkin seeds.

• Each type of PG has a job. PG1 and PG3 are mistakenly thought of as the good PGs while PG2 is thought of as the “bad” PG.

In truth, our bodies need all three types of fats in balanced amounts because all three are necessary to make our cells work as they were intended. What is “bad” is when the PG2 fats from excess omega 6 oils are out of proportion to the other fats. This will have negative effects on the body such as increased blood clotting, blood pressure, swelling, and inflammatory processes, increase tumor growth, degenerative processes and pain. The PG1 and PG3 group have the opposite effect and are therefore thought of as the good PGs.

The way anti-inflammatory medications work is that they stop the conversion of pro-inflammatory PG2 as well as PG 1 and PG3 which are anti-inflammatory. Omega 6 fats become pro-inflammatory when over consumed. OTC meds are effective, but they do not improve your body’s own ability to reduce inflammation and so the vicious cycle continues.

This is what a distorted omega 6:3 ratio translates into - inflammation, pain and a myriad of symptoms. Some of the common symptoms are headaches, joint pain, tendonitis, eczema, dry skin, dandruff, menstrual symptoms, cramping, spasms, irritable bowel, any condition that ends in the letters itis, mood disorders, anger issues, temper tantrums, learning disabilities and just feeling achy.

How Can I Change My Ratios?

What is most important is that the PGs we eat are balanced in the right amounts. The PGs in our bodies are in the exact same ratios in which we consume them. The best way to restore a healthy 2:1 ratio is to increase omega 3 and reduce omega 6. How do you do that?

1. Have your Omega 6:3 ratio measured.
2. Read all food labels and avoid foods with omega 6 added oils.
3. Take a high dose omega 3 oil and get at least 1500 mg of EPA daily and you may need more based on your ratio.
4. You do not need to entirely avoid natural food such as vegetables, eggs, and animal products. The effects of these foods on the ratio is far surpassed by the effect of added oils. In some cases of ratios of 20:1 or higher I recommend other dietary changes, but in general the shift back to a 2:1 omega 6:3 will come from ingesting high dose omega oil and removing foods with added oils.
5. Eat oily fish such as salmon, halibut, mackerel, or sardines. These fish offer omega 3 oil.
6. Have a teaspoon of high lignan flaxseed oil daily.
7. Eat pumpkin seeds, soaked chia seeds and ground hemp seed, and walnuts.

Depending on how high your omega 6:3 ratio is, it can take about four months to improve, but along the way, you will start to feel better. You can thank me later.

About the Author

Dr. Josh Kantor D.C. owns and manages Chill Space, a leading Wellness Spa in NYC. To learn more about scheduling a cryosauna session please visit his website at ChillSpaceNYC.com.

Additional References

• Anti-inflammatory Diet: What To Know - Medical News Today
• 10 Foods That Fight Pain - WebMD