Many decades ago, fibromyalgia was said to be “all in a woman’s head.” She was either given a prescription for an anti-anxiety or anti-depressant pill and sent home to “deal with it.” That was a time when many women were still working at home, being mothers and housewives. In many cases, roles have reversed with their significant other, leaving the man at home. Currently, 10% of all fibromyalgia patients are male. This represents over 1 million of the 12 million Americans that have the disease. Could it be due to the fact that now more Mr. Moms are being exposed to the chemicals of their labors?

A treatment for fibromyalgia is any drug, no matter what category, whose mechanism allows a reduction in the transmission of pain. These medications consist of anti-seizure, antidepressants and anti-inflammatories that are used to only treat the symptoms. Pain medications are also prescribed, including some having a high addiction potential.

Patient frustration level is extreme because of the lack of a cure. What can be tried other than prescription products to make a bad situation better? Renovating Your Mind thinks that simplicity is the key to opening the door for a causative agent(s) of fibromyalgia.

The solution could be to lessen your chemical burden. Look at all the ingredients in laundry detergents and softeners, products to clean the dishes, products to reduce static in your clothes, cleaning supplies, etc. You are breathing this stuff in every day. Think about the fact that you are wearing clothes that are contaminated by the very liquids used to wash, soften and reduce that hair-raising effect.

Reduce the chemical complexities of life by substituting laundry products with ones that are clear. There are no dyes to breathe in nor to come in contact with your skin. Next, use a basic soap. The less ingredients in the product the better for both your lungs and your body.

Use less fabric softener and laundry detergent. You can cut down on each by 25-50%. It will lower your grocery bills.

Use white vinegar in place of softener on your clothes in the washer. The clothes will not smell of vinegar. Make sure you put it in during the rinse cycle. It’s much less expensive than fabric softener and works just as well. Although, it doesn’t do as great a job of getting rid of the static. You can purchase simple static sheets for the dryer with no fragrance and no colors by major manufacturers.

Or, you can hang the sheets outside on what they call a “clothesline” so they dry, smell great and lose their static naturally.

Another alternative is heavy-duty aluminum foil. You make 3 balls out of the foil and put them in your dryer. They will get the static out of your clothes. The electricity of the clothes is siphoned off by the aluminum foil. Pretty cool.

Fibromyalgia is an inflammatory condition. Revamping your diet can help a great deal by naturally decreasing inflammation.

Foods include:

• Blueberries or some type berry (daily, could be frozen if out of season)

• Fatty Fish (2-3 times per week, also canned) which includes salmon, sardines, mackerel and tuna

• Seeds like sunflower and pumpkin seeds (daily)

• Sweet potatoes not white (2 times weekly)

• Coffee daily or green tea (daily)

• Spinach or kale (3-4 times per week)

• Beans like chickpeas, black beans, lentils, kidneys, pinto, black-eyed and cannellini beans (2 times a week, in soup or side dish)

• Yogurt, plain is best add honey and nuts and fruit (daily)

They all contain phytochemicals (antioxidants) that will help prevent or lessen inflammation throughout the body. Yogurt introduces beneficial bacteria that helps to put out inflammatory fires.

Fibromyalgia may be more apparent in women than men for a number of reasons. The possibility that women have a lower threshold than men for severe chronic allergic reactions. The fact that until recently, women have been home more than men because of their full-time duties as both a housewife and mother. Some genetic links were found in women that are correlated with the disease. Problem is, correlation doesn’t prove causation.

In the future, I will try to find more tips of interest to make our lives better and simpler.  Thank you in advance for helping me spread this information.

Categories: Food, Health, Medications, Mental Disease, Nutrition

Tags: anti-inflammatory foods, chemical burden and fibromyalgia, fibromyalgia, Foods, healthy foods