2 potential ways to ease nerve pain caused by diabetes

The nerve damage and pain caused by diabetes is one of the most debilitating aspects of the condition. Here are a few possible ways to help ease nerve pain:

A century or so ago, magnets were a popular form of medicine and were often used to treat pain. Today, such ideas are far from mainstream, but they may be worth a second look.

• One of the most intriguing studies on magnet therapy involved people with chronic neuropathic foot pain. In the study (conducted by a skeptical New York neurologist), when 19 people wore magnetic insoles in their shoes for four months, 75 percent of them reported feeling significant relief.
• In a recent follow-up study with a larger group of 375 people, the researcher repeated the experiment. The result was that magnets improved a wide range of symptoms, including burning, tingling, numbness and pain. The researchers concluded that magnets affect the firing of pain receptors in the skin. It's also been suggested that magnets draw blood into areas that need more oxygen by attracting the iron in it and help blood-vessel walls relax by influencing the flow of ions.
• The benefits of magnets are still far from proven, but using them appears to be harmless — with a few caveats. For example, don't use magnets if you have a pacemaker, and avoid using strong magnets on your head or in the area of cancer tumours or infections. There are no standards for how strong magnets should be to treat neuropathy, but products such as magnetic insoles are widely available.

Maybe. Sometimes, neuropathy can be fostered by a deficiency in the vitamins B6 and B12, both of which are involved in the function of the nervous system.

• You can get vitamin B6 from avocados, bananas, poultry, pork, potatoes and fish like tuna, while B12 is found in chicken, beef and a wide variety of seafood, including oysters, sardines and other fish.
• Ask your dietitian or doctor if you should take supplements. You can also consider alpha-lipoic acid, an antioxidant supplement that can help protect the nerves and ease the pain of neuropathy.

Although these methods are not completely proven to help with nerve pain, it's definitely possible. Especially for people suffering from diabetes and damaged nerves, these two methods are virtually harmless and risk-free -- if pain relief is possible, they're worth a shot!