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Diet & PMR.
I’ve had PMR for 2yrs & am now down from 15 to 5mg Pred. Having researched possible causes of this painful illness I recently went on a Mediterranean diet & excluded dairy & gluten whenever possible too. I use supplements such as Turmeric, collagen & vitamin D. My symptoms are now much better. I know the PMR is still there but I can live with it at its current level. I’m an active 66yr old & can now return to exercise & gardening. Research tells me the inflammation that causes PMR (& very many other illnesses such as thyroid issues) is caused by damage to our gut lining. Modern food manufacturing is guilty of harm here & we need to stop consuming processed foods of any description. Whilst I’ve always cooked from fresh there are things that I’ve eaten that have damaged my body (bought biscuits, pizza etc). An excellent read on this subject is Silent Fire by Shula Ravella. She really does makes the topic of Inflammation & illness make sense.
I feel I’m now proof that an anti inflammatory diet can work too. In December I was told I was borderline hyperthyroid but, after just 3 months on the Med diet, my thyroid levels were “normal”. My doctor was pretty impressed & said she should really be suggesting it to other patients with similar problems - I hope she is. My aim now is to come off the Pred & the blood pressure tablets I’ve been taking for 6 yrs (the 2 drugs clash & the BP medication had to be increased!). I do believe we can help ourselves with our inflammatory illnesses. My experience is that as soon as we accept pharma meds then we’re on a journey of ever increasing dependence. During my PMR experience I’ve been prescribed tablets to counteract the affect of other tablets - 7 in all. Ridiculous!
We aren’t built to consume the rubbish that food manufacturers put in our foods to give them extra colour, false sweetness or a prolonged shelf life. The more I’ve read the more angry I’ve become with the idea of corporations gambling with our health - especially our childrens. Please research for yourselves. I really think there’s something to be gained here.
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I just joined the group. on pregnasone for 9 months. on 6 mg but pain is back. kudos to you for maintaining a Mediterranean diet. I wish I had the willpower to resist the processed foods. based on your comments and my increased pain I will try again .
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4 ReactionsI hope you do manage it. I now walk down the isles of supermarkets & see most items as poison. Once you start reading up on inflammation & diet the more enthusiastic you should become. There’s lots of lovely food out there that can be pepped up with herbs, spices & olive oil. I could bore you to death with it all 😂😂.
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5 ReactionsMy PMR was triggered after having the initial two covid and the first booster vaccines (3 vaccines).
So I skipped the second booster (4th vaccine), which gave me a year reprieve, but then decided to get the covid bivalent vaccine (5th and latest vaccine) and the flu vaccine simultaneously .
Eight days later I flared terribly and had to increase my prednisone.
I'm really reluctant on getting any more vaccines at this time.
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7 ReactionsI'm glad that works for you. I've been eating "clean" for several years. Very strict. Got PMR this past January. Not fun and don't know what else to do to help other than prednisone.
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5 ReactionsMembers in this discussion may also appreciate reading this related discussion:
- PMR Diet: Foods to eat and avoid: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/diet-and-pmr/
I've drastically cut back on processed foods and try to eat mostly Mediterranean too. This week in the grocery store I was imagining how small the grocery store would be if they removed all the processed foods. Several aisles would just disappear!
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2 ReactionsI am with you 100% no more boosters.for.covid , flu or shingles.for me. To those who have not experienced PMR it disables you yrust me. Its horrible. The only point i would add is that if predistone does not improve your stiffness and pain by 70% within 5 days I would check its not something else. Make sure your on at least 15mg for the first 6 weeks
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2 ReactionsMy PCP, pain doc & rheumatologist all suggested keto as an inflam diet because sugars are the culprit to inflammation. Been strict for close to 6 months & while I believe it’s the right way to eat, the jury is out on if it helps PMR. My CRP & pain are intense & now back on 20 mg prednisone. I’ll eat clean because it’s right to me & now a way of life. Maybe I’d be way worse if I didn’t go keto?
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2 ReactionsSeems a short time on prednisone & 6 mg is really low for pain. Ask a specialist, but 6 brought it right back for me.
Totally agree that the food corporations are filling up our supermarkets with junk, not real food like our grandparents ate. I am a dietitian and eat primarily at whole foods organic diet, very light on meat. I focus on anti-inflammatory foods and I also take tumeric and Omega-3's daily. My PMR started after my second COVID Pfizer vaccination and took 4 months to diagnose because my symptoms were so mild and only bothered me a night in bed. As soon as I got up, no pain! I started with 10 mg. Prednisone and tapered off of it in about 1.5 years. Then I caught COVID and it triggered my PMR again. I started with 2 mg Prednisone and am now down to 1 mg. after five months.