I want to follow up on last week’s blog and talk a little bit about the other topics that have to do with pain. We get the same questions asked day in and day out, so we thought it would be useful to help educate everybody all at once.
Last time, we talked a little bit about pain medication, what exactly we are being prescribed to treat it, and also some of the alternate means of treating it, which we will get more in depth with in a little while. But today’s specific topic is another huge issue that we see with our clientele, and that is the sugar content in their diet. I’ve spoken about this in the past, but a lot of people are still not fully aware of how much sugar they intake every day. More specifically, how much sugar they are drinking. Liquid sugar is everywhere, but people don’t see it.
It’s one thing to take a piece of cake because it’s easy to log down. It’s a whole other issue when you have something that you think is hydrating you, but in reality, it’s just increasing the sugar in your system. When you’re thirsty from working out or it’s a hot day and you’re replenishing with all sugary liquid, you may not realize how many grams of sugar you are actually consuming. The amounts are insane. We go around telling our clients to start journaling the amount of sugar they consume in drinks or stop drinking sugary drinks altogether. Most people who do journal their intake are shocked at how much they are consuming by drinking alone.
The second reason to reduce sugar is that sugar specifically causes a huge inflammatory response in the body. The chemical reactions, in short, create a cascade of inflammation within your body and heightens the sense of pain. So, if you’re drinking a lot of sugary drinks and you’re having lower back pain or shoulder pain, one of the simplest ways to get a holistic approach for pain relief is to reduce your sugar intake. Replace it with pure hydration, whether it be water or something else that suits your taste.
That leads to another quick tip: If water is not your thing, whatever the reason, try adding some infusions to it. There’s fresh squeezed lemon juice, cucumbers, watermelon, berries, or anything like that. You can find natural, whole foods to give flavor to the water.
Some of our local favorites for healthy-eating places are SunLife Organics, Urban Plates, Joi Cafe, and Grabbagreen.
That’s the tip of the day. Watch out for that liquid sugar and we’ll see you soon!
