Nutritional intervention in chronic pain: an innovative way of targeting central nervous system sensitization?

Since chronic pain treatment programs rarely consider dietary pattern or adipose status, this 2020 review explores the alternative treatments to the current standard. While neuroinflammation is known to play a role in chronic pain, it is believed that this is partly due to the increased central nervous system glial activation. Preclinical studies have pointed to the possibility that the relationship between nutrition and central sensitization may be mediated via the bidirectional gut-brain interactions. This seems to suggest that neuroinflammation is induced by diet, which is a modifiable factor in people with chronic pain. The expert’s opinion is that a dietary pattern consisting of low quantities of saturated fat and added sugars may have various consequences, and ultimately prevent glial activation as well as prevent the transmission of inflammatory signals to the brain. Furthermore, a diet that reduces polyamine generation in the gut microbiota may help lessen or prevent central nervous system sensitization since polyamines can potentially excite N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (essential component of the central nervous system sensitization). [NPID: pain, adipose tissue, neuroinflammation, gut-brain, inflammation]

Year: 2020

Reference: Nijs, J., Tumkaya Yilmaz, S., Elma, Ö., Tatta, J., Mullie, P., Vanderweeën, L., Clarys, P., Deliens, T., Coppieters, I., Weltens, N., Van Oudenhove, L., Huysmans, E., & Malfliet, A. (2020). Nutritional intervention in chronic pain: an innovative way of targeting central nervous system sensitization?. Expert opinion on therapeutic targets, 24(8), 793–803. https://doi.org/10.1080/14728222.2020.1784142