Nancy Dell: Foods to reduce pain; top salad dressings

1. The Olympics have inspired me to exercise more but my muscles are sore.  Can any foods help? 
Tom, Feeding Hills

In one study in the Journal of Nutrition, people who ate a bowl of cherries reduced a major marker for inflammation by 25 percent.

In other research, runners who drank 12 ounces of tart cherry juice twice a day for 7 days before a distance run, had less muscle pain.

The antioxidants that give cherries their ruby red color block inflammation and inhibit pain enzymes just like aspirin and naproxen do.

Experts recommend eating 45 cherries a day. If you are a diabetic, that may be more fruit than your blood sugar can handle. So try ginger.

It also works like aspirin to reduce inflammation.  Ginger can relieve arthritis pain, muscle aches, and migraines. Experts recommend one quarter teaspoon a day.  It's good in smoothies or tea.

2. Any suggestions for good lower calories salad dressings? 
Laura, Internet

 It's true, many low fat salad dressings taste terrible and you can spend a lot of money trying to find a healthful and good tasting salad dressing.

Recently the Center for Science in the Public Interest rated the best tasting salad dressings with no more than 110 calories and 100 milligrams of sodium per 2 tablespoon serving.

The winners are, Cindy's Fresh Buttermilk Ranch, Cindy's Honey Dijon Vinaigrette, Litehouse Balsamic Vinaigrette, Wish Bone Deluxe French, Bolthouse Farms Blue Cheese, Bolthouse Farms Yogurt Caesar.