The use of complementary and alternative medicine has dramatically increased in the United States. The effects of select dietary constituents in animal models and clinical pain states are reviewed. Specifically, the antinociceptive and analgesic properties of soybeans, sucrose, and tart cherries are discussed. The potential actions of dietary constituents as antiinflammatory and antioxidant agents are presented.
The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has increased in the United States and a recent survey indicates that 40% of Americans use CAM for the treatment of persistent or chronic conditions. 1 CAM has been frequently used for pain control when prescribed medications were ineffective. 2 Persistent or chronic pain is a common symptom among disease states ranging from cancer to arthritis. To alleviate suffering from unmitigated pain, patients often seek complementary and alternative therapies such as nutritional supplements, herbal medicines, acupuncture, and mind-body modalities. Useful reviews of acupuncture 3,4 and herbal therapies 5 exist; however, specific data on the relationship between dietary components and pain are lacking. The investigations described in this review were obtained through searches on Medline of keywords such as diet, nutrition, pain, and inflammation. As this area of research has limited evidence in the existing literature, a specific set of criteria for study selection was not employed. This review will present select dietary constituents as novel pain therapies. Specifically, evidence from animal and human studies is presented on the analgesic and antihyperalgesic properties of soy, sucrose, and tart cherries.