Joe Tatta DPT, CCN, Musculoskeletal Pain Expert, was interviewed by host of the Anxiety Summit, Trudy Scott, Food Mood Expert and Nutritionist, author of The Antianxiety Food Solution.
Nutritional Influences on Anxiety and Musculoskeletal Pain
- Link between anxiety and chronic musculoskeletal problems
- Fear avoidance behaviors and pain
- Headaches, back pain, joint pain and nutritional influences
- An exercise prescription for anxiety
Here are some snippets from our interview:
People used to think depression was more linked to chronic pain but we are learning its more anxiety driven
The chronic anxiety that people have on a daily basis kicks off the pain process
Negative thoughts, worry, doom-and-gloom about the future all come in to play, with fear being the most common emotion leading to pain
Here is the very recent 2015 paper that discusses this – Psychological functioning of people living with chronic pain: A meta-analytic review.
Joe tied fear and anxiety to adrenalin release and the effects on the muscles, specifically how the smaller muscles around the spine and in the neck are turned off. You then have less blood flow, less oxygen and less nutrients going to those muscles and that’s when the pain starts.
Joe shared the staggering number of people who suffer from chronic pain:
more than those who suffer from heart disease, diabetes and cancer combined!
We also discussed migraines and magnesium, and this paper: Why all migraine patients should be treated with magnesium
Magnesium, the second most abundant intracellular cation, is essential in many intracellular processes and appears to play an important role in migraine pathogenesis. Routine blood tests do not reflect true body magnesium stores since <2% is in the measurable, extracellular space, 67% is in the bone and 31% is located intracellularly. Lack of magnesium may promote cortical spreading depression, hyperaggregation of platelets, affect serotonin receptor function, and influence synthesis and release of a variety of neurotransmitters.
There is strong evidence that magnesium deficiency is much more prevalent in migraine sufferers than in healthy controls.
Considering these features of magnesium, the fact that magnesium deficiency may be present in up to half of migraine patients, and that routine blood tests are not indicative of magnesium status, empiric treatment with at least oral magnesium is warranted in all migraine sufferers.
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Excellent interview! Lots of useful information and ideas. Validates my own experience.
Wonderful Evelyn!
Is there a best form of magnesium to take? I use citrate about
500 mg a day and it doesn’t seem to help.
Thank you. Wonderful informative educational interview.
Linda (if I might step in, Trudy?) I have no training in nutrition but I seem to be so deficient in magnesium that I was not able to take enough (due to loose bowels) to gain a therapeutic dose via magnesium tablets. I use a liquid product from Mother Earth Minerals and I have seen great relief of my lifelong symptoms, which I have determined on my own to be magnesium deficiency. (I used to think I was hypothyroid until a cursory blood test proved my thyroid “normal,” but the list of magnesium deficient symptoms is even longer and fits me better.) Until I can find a doctor that doesn’t look at me like I’m insane for trying to help myself, I’m on my own.
Thanks for sharing MaryLiz – we have to find what works for us
Linda
I like a magnesium malate chelate and have clients go up to 1200mg per day or until bowel tolerance. Some people can take more. Carolyn Dean also talked about magnesium in season 2 so do check that one out https://www.everywomanover29.com/blog/anxiety-summit-take-magnesium-melt-anxiety-away/
I’m going to ask Joe to come and comment too
Linda,
Try magnesium chelate powdered form which may be better absorbed. Place a pinch or two under you tongue for sublingual absorption. You may also find transdermal magnesium in a gel suspension that can be directly applied to painful, tight or sore muscles.
I use magnesium glycinate, it’s supposed to be easiest for the body to absorb and use. Most bioavailable.
Thanks for sharing Jill – I also like this form
during lecture, you touched on idea of histamine induced migraine, can you recommend a treatment for that, would you recommend a histamine blocker ?
Mondana, check out the separate talk on histamine intolerance https://www.everywomanover29.com/blog/anxiety-summit-anxiety-musculoskeletal-pain/
and Yasmina’s website http://thelowhistaminechef.com/
Absolutely fantastic interview. The information about fear causing adrenaline to release, turning off certain muscles is amazing! So when the muscles turn off and the blood flow decreases so do oxygen and nutrient levels to these muscle, then, causing pain. I have fibromyalgia and anxiety and the two never mix. This put many pieces together for me, including the magnesium information. Thanks, for all the information, Trudy, as always, thanks for your wonderful Summits.
Barbara
So glad you enjoyed it! I also found this part amazing! It makes so much sense!
Trudy
Thanks for your feedback Barbara. Great to see you connecting the dots on a deeper level.
Can Joe Tatta please share any references or resources for comments about GABA receptors and relaxed state of fascia?
Thank you!
I really enjoyed Dr Tatta’s comments on all the factors that affect our muscles.
Camille
I also really enjoyed that part too! and the GABA/benzo sections! I’ll ask Joe to come and comment
Hi Camille,
Fascia is an incredible tissue with influence from mechano and chemo receptors. We are still learning about fascia. Cells similar to smooth muscle have been found in fascia and are thought to have the ability to contract and relax. Smooth muscle has receptors for GABA which is an inhibitory neurotransmitter. Some of these are thought to act locally in the fascia yet still others think they act centrally in the central nervous system or spinal tracts.
The book Anatomy Trains is a wonderful resource.
http://www.anatomytrains.com/product-category/books/
Pubmed Reference
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=Active+fascial+contractility%3A+Fascia+may+be+able+to+contract+in+a+smooth+muscle-like+manner+and+thereby+influence+musculoskeletal+dynamics
If you have access to pubmed.com you can also reference
I also found this one
“GABA A receptors consisting of the Gabrα6 subunit are part of pathway regulating myofascial pain.”
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306452213003217
Are you familiar with using guaifenesin for fibromyalgia? Besides being a congestion medication, it also has uricosuric properties and Dr. St. Amand, who has fibromyalgia, believes fibromyalgia is somewhat similar to gout. For more info see http://www.fibromyalgiatreatment.com/
Lisa – I am not and don’t like the look of the side-effects. I’d still focus on looking for underlying causes and address those