Many Americans, mostly women, suffer from a chronic condition known as fibromyalgia. Fatigue, tender points, and chronic pain in muscles, ligaments, and tendons characterize fibromyalgia. The condition is not progressive or fatal, but it is extremely uncomfortable for the sufferer. Fibromyalgia treatment can help alleviate the symptoms, but they may never truly disappear. Such treatments will also improve the patients overall health.

The basics of treating fibromyalgia include reducing stress, getting enough sleep, getting regular exercise, pacing activity evenly, and eating a healthy, well balanced diet. Fibromyalgia and diet go hand in hand. Healthier foods help alleviate the symptoms even though there is no actual proven fibromyalgia diet.

Depending on the patients individual symptoms, a particular patients diet will vary. It is wise for any fibromyalgia patient to consult his or her doctor before engaging in a special diet. Fibromyalgia diet nutrition not only helps most fibromyalgia sufferers, but would also serve to benefit almost anyone. One of the most highly recommended dietary changes is to eat smaller meals more frequently each day. Eating smaller meals five or six times a day compared to the traditional three meals a day can greatly reduce fatigue.

When engaging in an effective fibromyalgia diet it is beneficial to balance meals. This means to eat equal amounts of proteins, carbohydrates, dairy, fruits, and vegetables with each meal. While eating balanced meals will help, many fibromyalgia patients benefit greatly from vitamin supplements. Vitamin supplements not only provide a boost of vitamin and mineral necessities but also help the body to better absorb such nutrients from food.

Because a healthy diet is so important to treating fibromyalgia, there are foods to avoid. First and foremost, if the patient has any food allergies, it is wise to eliminate those foods from the diet entirely. It is also important to limit the sugar, caffeine, and alcohol intake on a daily basis. Drinking all natural juices and avoiding high fructose corn syrup can greatly reduce the amount of sugar in the diet. While caffeine gives a boost of energy, it may also inhibit healthy sleep patterns therefore should only be ingested in the morning. Alcohol can also affect sleep patterns and dehydrate the body.

Other foods to avoid when adjusting to a fibromyalgia diet are preservatives, artificial sweeteners, and glutamates. A healthy diet, especially for fibromyalgia sufferers should be comprised of all natural ingredients. Artificial ingredients, even at a miniscule level can act as toxins within the body.

An excellent way to see if the fibromyalgia diet is working is to keep a food diary for a period of time. A food diary of sorts kept by a fibromyalgia sufferer is found online in Fibro Diet Part I and II. The food diary will help the patient reflect on what he or she ate and how it made them feel. This will help identify harmful food patterns that could be worsening the symptoms.