The green glasses that ease chronic pain: A new study suggests that glasses may be a drug-free alternative to painkillers

Wearing green-tinted glasses could be a new way to treat chronic pain.

New research suggests that if patients with fibromyalgia – a condition that affects around two million people in the UK and causes widespread pain and extreme fatigue – wear green-lensed glasses for four hours a day for two weeks, less pain medication is needed.

Currently, antidepressants are used to relieve the pain of fibromyalgia because traditional pain relievers have little or no effect. But these drugs can also cause side effects, including loss of libido.

The new study, conducted by Duke University in the US and involving 34 patients, suggests that the trek pass could be a drug-free alternative.

Patients who wore green glasses were four times more likely to have less anxiety than patients in other groups who did not see a reduction. Although their pain scores were the same, wearers of green glasses used less pain medication, suggesting that their symptoms were adequately controlled.

One theory has it that green light, which falls in the middle of the light color spectrum, triggers the body’s release of natural painkiller-like chemicals called enkephalins, and may also change the way the brain processes pain.

It can also help with pain because cells in the thalamus, the part of the brain that processes information from the eye, are less responsive to green light.

The thalamus is the processing center for a number of pain conditions, and one theory is that green light may make it less active.

This is not the first time this colored light has been suggested for pain management.

Patients who wore green glasses were four times more likely to have less anxiety than patients in other groups who did not see a reduction [File photo]

Last year, an American study of 29 migraine sufferers who were exposed to green LED light strips for one to two hours a day for ten weeks showed that the number of headaches decreased by 60 percent. Monthly migraine attacks fell from an average of 22.3 to 9.4, according to the University of Arizona study published in the journal Cephalalgia.

In a new study at Vedanta Research in North Carolina, USA, 250 migraine sufferers will use a green light lamp for at least 30 minutes a day for six weeks to see if it reduces the frequency and severity of headaches.

Green light is also being studied for the treatment of, among other things, knee osteoarthritis pain and pain after surgery.

Forty people are participating in a 10-week clinical study at the Nova Scotia Health Authority in Canada investigating the effects on knee osteoarthritis. The test involves daily exposure to green light-emitting LEDs.

Dr Andrew Dowson, clinical director of NHS East Kent and Bromley Headache Services, became interested in the impact of different colored lights on migraines after researching the topic more than 20 years ago.

“We looked at the range of wavelengths and both the red and blue ends of the spectrum were involved in migraines,” he says.

“Green light is in the middle of the spectrum, so it’s probably more acceptable and less irritating for migraine sufferers.

“This is very interesting, but more research is needed in a much larger number of patients before it becomes a proven concept and can be used as a treatment in patients.”

Migraines can be associated with rosacea, a skin condition that causes facial flushing.

New research in the journal Frontiers in Medicine suggests that 65 percent of people who get migraines also have rosacea, and 54 percent of rosacea sufferers have migraines.

Although the exact link is unclear, the two conditions share common triggers, such as stress and certain foods.

One suggestion is that a hormone called calcitonin, which is present at higher levels in both diseases, is involved.

Identifying this link could lead to new treatments for patients, the researchers said.

eat mood

How food can affect your mood. This week: blueberries

Blueberries can improve mood within just two hours of eating, although you need to have a lot of them.

That was the finding of a 2017 University of Reading study in which volunteers were given a blueberry drink made with 30g of frozen blueberry powder (equivalent to almost two cups of frozen blueberries) or a placebo with the same amount of sugar and vitamin C.

One reason is that blueberries are rich in a plant compound called anthocyanin, which increases blood flow to the part of the brain linked to mood regulation, says Mahmoud Khodadi, a Bradford pharmacist with an interest in how food affects health. Brain.

try this

The PUMA x Modibodi Sports Leggings and Shorts (From £28.50, modibodi.co.uk) can be worn during periods so you can exercise without worrying about leakage. They are made of quick-drying material with a highly absorbent layer that can hold up to two to three tampons.

sleep well

Best sleeping position for your condition. This week: Sleep on your side to improve brain health

When we sleep, our brain clears waste products from a day’s activity – and it does so more effectively when you sleep on your side. At least in animals, this is the case, according to neuroscientists at Stony Brook University in the US, who believe it is likely to extend to humans as well.

Their study, published in the Journal of Neuroscience in 2015, was based on MRI scans.

“The side sleeping position is already the most popular for humans – and for most animals.

“Apparently we have adapted the side sleeping position to rid our brain most efficiently of the metabolic waste products that accumulate while we are awake,” says Dr. Maiken Nedergaard, who led the study.

Many diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, are associated with a build-up of proteins and other cellular debris in the brain. So the more you drain, the better.

When we sleep, our brain clears waste products from a day’s activity – and it does so more effectively when you sleep on your side

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