🧠 The Surprising Link Between Diet, Fibromyalgia & Brain Inflammation

Hi Friend,

Hope you are well. What if the food you eat could shape how your brain processes pain?

If you live with fibromyalgia, you're probably familiar with fatigue, brain fog, widespread pain, and flares that seem to come out of nowhere. But behind these symptoms may be something you’ve never heard of: microglia — the brain’s immune cells.

And here's the exciting part: your diet can influence how these microglia behave — either helping or harming your brain’s ability to heal.

Let’s break it down.

🧬 What Are Microglia – and Why Do They Matter?

Microglia are your brain’s internal immune system — like white blood cells for your nervous system. They help clear damage, support brain health, and maintain balance in how pain is processed.

But in fibromyalgia, stress, infection, or environmental triggers can shift microglia into an overactive, inflammatory state. This leads to:

• Heightened pain sensitivity

• Fatigue and energy crashes

• Brain fog and poor sleep

• Mood changes

🔄 The Two Types of Microglia: Helpers vs. Harmers

When we eat poorly, experience chronic stress, or sleep badly, we shift microglia toward the M1 state, leading to worsening fibromyalgia symptoms.

🚨 How “Bad” Food Can Trigger Brain Inflammation

Certain foods act as danger signals to your body — not just causing bloating or blood sugar crashes, but activating inflammation that travels all the way to your brain.

🍩 Step-by-Step: How This Happens

1. Ultra-processed, sugary, and additive-laden foods damage the gut lining

2. This creates a “leaky gut” — allowing toxins, bacteria, and food fragments into the bloodstream

3. The immune system sees these as threats → releases inflammatory chemicals

4. These signals reach the brain and activate M1 microglia

5. The result? More pain, more fatigue, more brain fog

📚 A 2019 study by Goebel et al. (Journal of Clinical Medicine) found gut leakiness and immune activation in fibromyalgia patients, linking the gut and brain in chronic pain.

🍽️ What to Eat to Calm the Brain & Support Healing

Let’s focus on food that shifts microglia toward their healing state and supports your gut-brain axis.

✅ Best Foods for Calming Microglia

❌ Foods That Worsen Inflammation and Flares

🧪 Evidence Snapshot

• Loggia et al. (2019, Brain, Behavior, and Immunity): PET imaging showed increased microglial activation in the brains of fibromyalgia patients, especially in pain-processing regions.

• Zhao et al. (2018, Pain Research and Management): Omega-3 supplementation over 12 weeks improved pain and emotional health in fibromyalgia patients.

• Arranz et al. (2021, Nutrients): A low-glycaemic Mediterranean-style diet reduced inflammation and fatigue in people with fibromyalgia.

• Goebel et al. (2019, Journal of Clinical Medicine): Found increased gut permeability ("leaky gut") and systemic inflammation in fibromyalgia patients.

🌱 Doctor’s Advice

Start small. Add one anti-inflammatory food per meal. Build your meals around what supports your brain, not just what fills you up.

Try this:

• A bowl of porridge with flaxseeds and blueberries

• A piece of grilled salmon with leafy greens and lentils

• A cup of green tea with a piece of dark chocolate

• A spoonful of sauerkraut or kefir with lunch

These changes help seal the gut, reduce flares, and support long-term nervous system health.

👩‍⚕️ Want a Personalised Plan?

Inside our community, we help people like you create bespoke wellness plans based on:

• Your symptoms

• your diagnosis

• Your pain scores

Join us for expert guidance, weekly coaching including yoga, somatic therapy, nutrition and more, and real community support — all designed with fibromyalgia, ME/CFS, and long COVID in mind. Free 7 day trial.

👉 https://mend-collective.mn.co/

📩 Coming Next Week:

“Can You Rewire Chronic Pain? The Science of Neuroplasticity & Somatic Therapy”

Until then — nourish your brain, protect your gut, and be kind to yourself.

Warmly,

Dr Ahmed
Founder, Instant GP & The mend collective