Use Coffee to Help You Control Pain? by Joan Kent, PhD

 

Coffee — specifically, the caffeine in it — can help us boost pain relief from other pain-relievers or work by itself. It’s especially good for muscle pain relief. That’s great news if you work out hard.

 

Scientists speculate that caffeine’s pain-relieving power comes from 3 mechanisms:

• It blocks release of adenosine. Adenosine is a brain chemical that carries pain signals to the brain.

 

• It activates adrenalin pathways in the brain. Those pathways include the body’s own pain-killing mechanism.

 

• It stimulates the central nervous system in a way that changes the processing of pain signals.

 

Of the 3, I like the first one best. The other 2 don’t actually explain clearly, but the first does. Here’s why.

 

What’s Up with Adenosine?

 

Adenosine’s job is to prevent the release of 2 brain chemicals:  norepinephrine and dopamine. That keeps the levels available at a given time within control. Norepinephrine and dopamine make us feel alert.

 

When we drink coffee, the caffeine blocks adenosine. It occupies adenosine receptors and prevents adenosine from getting into them. As a result, dopamine and norepinephrine are released in larger amounts. That’s how coffee or tea makes us feel alert.

 

But norepinephrine also has analgesic power, so it offers a bonus. It wakes us up and helps to relieve pain.

 

Norepinephrine is made in the brain when we eat protein foods:  fish, eggs, chicken, beef, lamb, pork, turkey, shrimp, crab, yogurt (with 18-22 g of protein per serving).

 

For non-animal protein, use high-quality vegan protein powders from peas, hemp, brown rice, or other vegetable sources. (Kale is a great food, but eating it doesn’t provide much protein by itself.)

 

Your Take-Away?

Be sure to eat protein foods (or use plant-protein powder) several times a day, so your norepinephrine levels are adequate when you want to release them with caffeine.

 

For additional tips like these — or for help with health issues — just visit LastResortNutrition.com and request your free Boost My Health & Energy Now Consult. Discover how easy it is to get your nutrition and your health on track.

 

Brought to you by Dr. Joan Kent, best-selling author of Stronger Than Sugar:  7 Simple Steps to Defeat Sugar Addiction, Lift Your Mood, and Transform Your Health.