Diet and Arthritis

19 Jun

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Diet and Arthritis.
A good diet is important for everyone, but it is especially helpful for people with arthritis. Experts in diet recommend seven basic guidelines for a balanced, healthy diet.Eat a variety of foods, Maintain ideal weight, Avoid too much fat and cholesterol, Avoid too much sugar, Eat foods with enough starch and fiber, Avoid too much sodium,Drink alcohol in moderation.

Can changing my diet really help my arthritis?

Yes. The right diet can certainly help some people with arthritis and rheumatism. For example, if you are overweight and suffer from arthritis, one of the most important things you can do to help yourself is to change the amount and type of food you eat.

Recent research has also discovered several new links between arthritis and diet.It is also important to consider whether your regular diet is giving you all the important basic nutrients including minerals such as calcium and iron. If it does not, then your general health will suffer and this may have an effect on your arthritis.

Can certain foods worsen rheumatoid arthritis symptoms?

Because the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis vary from one day to the next, it may seem reasonable to think that the foods you eat might affect your symptoms. Although there’s no definitive evidence that any particular foods have an effect on joint pain or inflammation, some research suggests that oranges and certain fish oils may reduce joint inflammation in some people with rheumatoid arthritis. However, more research is needed to assess this possible benefit.If you believe a certain food increases your arthritis symptoms, there’s no harm in omitting it from your diet to see if it helps. But don’t exclude whole food groups or large numbers of foods without consulting a registered dietitian or your doctor.

“People with arthritis desperately want to help themselves by finding a diet that suits them, but there is simply no quick-fix, miracle diet that will cure arthritis,” says Fergus Logan, ARC’s chief executive. “Eating a healthy diet with plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables and at least two portions of oily fish a week is beneficial, but our commonsense advice is that people should expect minor improvements rather than a miracle.”
Rheumatoid arthritis patients may be able to reduce their high risk of heart attacks and strokes with a gluten-free, vegan diet, a study suggests.

Heart attacks and strokes are among the leading causes of death for sufferers, as the inflammation caused by the disease impacts upon the arteries. But an Arthritis Research and Therapy study found those who pursued a vegan regime had less “bad” cholesterol. By clogging arteries, this is seen as a key risk factor for heart problems.

Arthritis is a general term describing over 100 different conditions that cause pain, stiffness and (often) inflammation in one or more joints. Everyone with arthritis can benefit from eating a healthy well balanced diet. There is no special diet or ‘miracle food’ that cures arthritis, but some conditions may be helped by avoiding or including certain foods. For example, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis seem to respond to an increased dietary intake of fish oils, while gout benefits from avoidance of alcohol and offal meats

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