Any sensible fibromyalgia treatment plan should begin with what is easiest to change.  Cutting out foods and additives that are known to trigger fibromyalgia flare-ups is a good place to start.  We also recommend a total body detoxifying cleanse to rid your body of built-up toxins.

Take this detox quiz to see if a cleanse could help you.

In the videos above, the doctor refers to “leaky gut” syndrome.  We have an informative post about leaky gut here.

As for which foods you should consider avoiding, we have to remember that everyone is different.  What triggers fibromyalgia symptoms in one person may have little to no effect on someone else.  Still, while there may not be a single, universally effective fibromyalgia diet plan that can provide relief for all patients, there do appear to be certain foods and food additives that researchers believe may cause flare-ups for a significant number of people.

If you’ve been diagnosed with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS), chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), or myofascial pain syndrome (chronic muscle pain), then eliminating some or all of these foods from your diet may give you some relief!

Aspartame (NutraSweet) can cause many symptoms of fibromyalgia to become worse. This artificial sweetener is found in most diet sodas and many other low-calorie foods. Aspartame stimulates the NMDA pain receptor that opens when pain is increasing from severe to chronic. Aspartame speeds up this process. Fibromyalgia patients have been found to have more of these NMDA pain receptors than is usual. For many people, eliminating aspartame from their diet dramatically lowers their fibromyalgia pain.  But, good news!  There is a chemical-free, plant-based sugar substitute called Stevia that does not seem to trigger fibromyalgia flare-ups in most people, so if you have a sweet tooth, you might look for that in your local health food store or online.

Food additives like MSG and nitrites are in many processed foods as well as foods offered by restaurants. Monosodium glutamate is often added to soups, stews, and Chinese food. Similar to aspartame, these food additives could affect the NMDA pain receptors.  Nitrites are used to preserve lunch meats, hot dogs, and other ready-to-eat meats.  People suffering from fibromyalgia often do not handle these additives at all well, so highly processed foods containing MSG or nitrites should be left out of a fibromyalgia diet whenever possible.

Simple carbohydrates, fructose and sugar may increase fibromyalgia pain symptoms. Cutting sugar from your diet can reduce symptoms from other conditions that can have an adverse effect on fibromyalgia patients. As an example, if you suffer from chronic yeast infections, cutting simple carbohydrates and sugars out of your diet will lower the amount of yeast in your system. Less yeast can mean less pain in the muscles and throughout the body, even for people without fibromyalgia.  So it is well worth leaving these out of your diet when trying to cope with this disorder. Eliminating simple carbohydrates will also help to regulate blood sugar levels and could give you more energy.

Caffeine, often found in tea, coffee, chocolate and some soft drinks is often used as a stimulant.  Many fibromyalgia sufferers feel they need a caffeine boost during the day to combat fatigue. This is the wrong approach though, because the “boost” that caffeine gives you is very short-lived.  It can then trigger a deeper, longer sedative reaction. This just intensifies the fatigue you were feeling before.  Experts recommend leaving caffeine out of a fibromyalgia diet altogether.  Many patients who have eliminated caffeine begin to notice an improvement in their chronic fatigue symptoms within one week.

Gluten and yeast appear in foods together many times and can cause problems for people with fibromyalgia.  Unfortunately, even if you are only sensitive to one of these, it is hard to cut one without cutting the other.  Cutting out baked goods like cakes, breads and donuts can prevent overgrowth of the yeast fungus in the body.  Too much yeast fungus can cause aching muscles and joint pain.  If you have gluten intolerance, it can cause digestive issues. This can increase fatigue. By cutting yeast and gluten from your diet you may be able to eliminate a significant amount of your myofascial and fibromyalgia pain and improve energy levels.

Dairy products, especially milk can exacerbate fibromyalgia symptoms. However, these products are a great source of calcium and protein to build strong bones and muscles, so if you feel you need a glass of milk or a bite of cheese now and then, we suggest you stick with the fat-free and skim varieties and take it in moderation.

Soy products, especially soy flour may cause many of the same problems as gluten.  But soy lecithins are okay.

You will have to experiment with the foods you eat in order to discover which foods are your fibromyalgia triggers. What bothers one person might not have any significant impact on you.  We suggest keeping a food diary and eliminating one thing at a time for at least a week before you try cutting something else out of your diet.  Write down any changes you notice in your energy levels, muscle and joint pain, brain fog and other fibromyalgia symptoms. You might have to be a bit of a detective, but if changing what you eat makes it easier to live with this disorder, isn’t it worth coming up with the right fibromyalgia diet for your body?

So, now that we’ve cut all of these things out, what’s left that’s safe for you to eat?

A low carb diet can be a real help for fibromyalgia sufferers.  Eat mostly lean meats, fresh vegetables, and possibly some low-sugar fruits (organic would be best).  If you do not need to lose weight, you may add brown rice, quinoa, dry beans, and whole grains if they do not cause your fibromyalgia symptoms to flare-up.

Got a sweet tooth?  Can’t live without pizza? Nowadays, there are some very tasty
low carb foods and gluten free foods available.  This is one of my favorite stores, check them out…

Be sure to read food labels!  The 7 foods to avoid are commonly used ingredients in many processed foods.  Taking a few minutes to be sure you’re not consuming any of these foods can prevent unexpected flare-ups of your fibromyalgia symptoms.