Diets for Arthritis

There are two basic categories that one can use to classify diets for arthritis. The first focuses on what foods you need to avoid with the goal of keeping arthritis episodes at bay. The second focuses on food recommendations that are believed to ease arthritis pain owing to the nutrients that can be found in these foods. In this post, we will examine both types of diets for arthritis so patients can choose the foods that are best for them.

Foods to avoid when you have arthritis. The exact foods to avoid when you have arthritis ultimately depend on the exact type of arthritis that you have. There are over 100 known variants of arthritis each caused by different factors. It is therefore important to understand the underlying mechanism behind your condition by taking the time to see your doctor for a definitive diagnosis.

Once you’re sure of the type of arthritis at work, you can embrace diets for arthritis that focus on avoidance. Among the foods that doctors strongly recommend arthritis patients avoid include red meats that have high purine content, citrus fruits like oranges, grapefruit, lemons, pomelo, and tangerine, vegetables that are considered part of the nightshade family including potatoes, peppers, tomatoes, and aubergines, and drinks that have high caffeine and sugar content.

In theory, the active substances in many of these foods promote inflammation which can trigger an arthritis attack. A particularly compelling example can be found with gout and wheat where the high uric acid content of wheat eventually crystallizes and is deposited in the joints triggering very painful bouts of arthritis pain. These diets for arthritis essentially center on preventing inflammation and while there are no comprehensive lists that conclusively identify which ones can cause pain for all patients, there are quite a few food sources that have garnered the universal scorn of most individuals.

Foods to eat when you have arthritis. On the other hand, many diets for arthritis focus on promoting foods that have proven anti-inflammatory qualities. These food sources contain substances that have been identified as able to counteract the effect of inflammation in the body thereby lessening the number of attacks and the severity of the pain.

Examples of foods that are highly featured in many diets for arthritis are those with a high Omega-3 content like salmon, herring, sardines, walnuts and soybeans, extra virgin oil which contains a lot of essential and healthy oils, foods with high Vitamin C content other than citrus and this includes cauliflower and broccoli, cherries, and green tea.

Each of these foods are known to contain substances that combat inflammatory symptoms, helping to manage arthritis attacks. Green tea, for example, is rich in a substance known as epigallocathechin-3-gallate which has detoxifying qualities that flush-out inflammatory chemicals from the bloodstream. Regularly drinking green tea up to 3 or 4 cups a day can significantly help patients win the war over arthritis pain.

Diets for arthritis are not yet fully understood in the way they prevent or initiate arthritis attacks but significant headway has been made to suggest that food indeed plays a role in many arthritis cases. By paying attention to which foods one should avoid and which foods a patient should add to their diet, the frequency and severity of arthritis can be improved. This is a good thing since every person with arthritis knows that even the smallest amount of pain relief can go a long way towards easing their suffering from a disease that as of yet has a cure.

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