Healthy eating tips for people with arthritis

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Diet is a topic of concern for many people living with joint disease. There's no special diet or 'miracle food' that can cure arthritis, but there are a lot of popular diet and arthritis tips that don't have scientific proof and may cause confusion. This article offers some dietary advice for people with arthritis.

1. Osteoarthritis

1.1. Diet and weight loss Osteoarthritis is a common type of arthritis. This is a disease that damages the cartilage, the cushioning tissue that keeps joints moving smoothly, making movement more difficult and leading to increased stiffness and pain.
Osteoarthritis can affect any joint in the body, but the areas most commonly affected are the knees, hips, and small joints in the hands.
The management of arthritis focuses on symptom management. It's not possible to take specific foods or nutritional supplements to cure osteoarthritis, but diet and exercise can be important to help relieve symptoms.
It is widely accepted that weight loss (if overweight) combined with increased physical activity can improve function and symptoms such as pain and stiffness, and should be part of arthritis treatment.
Weight loss is recommended as a core treatment for overweight and obese individuals. Reaching or maintaining a healthy weight can reduce pain, improve function, and slow the progression of arthritis.
Being overweight is an important factor in arthritis because overloading the affected joint is one of the risk factors for developing arthritis or worsening the symptoms of arthritis. Losing weight helps reduce stress on joints, especially weight-bearing joints like hips and knees.
There is increasing interest in not only weight loss, but also in particular adipose tissue (or adipose tissue) loss, as it is now recognized that adipose tissue is active and can secrete a number of factors chemicals, some of which may have an inflammatory effect.
1.2. Physical activity Painful and stiff joints can reduce mobility and make physical activity more difficult. However, physical activity can help maintain a healthy body weight and protect joints by keeping muscles strong, reducing stress on joints, increasing range of motion, and reducing stiffness.
Local strengthening exercises (activities like yoga, pilates, or dance) are recommended and aerobic exercise (activities like walking, cycling, or swimming) is recommended. temporarily increase your heart rate and respiration).
It's important to find the type of activity that's right for you. Ask your doctor to refer you to a physical therapist who can help you find a suitable program.

1.3. Taking supplements Many people with arthritis report trying different supplements to relieve pain and improve function:
Glucosamine and chondroitin sulphate Joint cartilage often contains the compounds glucosamine and chondroitin, and It is thought that taking these as supplements, often taken together, can help improve the health of damaged cartilage. However, although these supplements are considered safe, evidence of clinical benefit is scant and prescribing supplements such as glucosamine and chondroitin is not routinely recommended for the treatment of arthritis. .
If you decide to take glucosamine or chondroitin, always seek advice from your pharmacist about potential interactions with other medications you may be taking. For commonly prescribed glucosamine doses are between 1250 and 1500 mg per day, with an assessment of treatment if no benefit is seen after 2-3 months. Note: these supplements are often made from shellfish, and therefore are not suitable if you have a shellfish allergy. For chondroitin, there is no definite dosage for arthritis, but manufacturers tend to recommend 400 to 1200 mg per day.
Vitamin D Vitamin D is important for building and maintaining overall bone health. Although some studies have linked low vitamin D intake with an increased risk and progression of arthritis, trials have not supported vitamin D supplementation for pain and osteoarthritis relief. . However, people with arthritis should follow government advice for the general population to consider taking a daily supplement containing 10 micrograms of vitamin D during the fall and winter months when the sun is not strong enough to the body makes vitamin D.

Other supplements such as turmeric and fish oil Overall, there is limited, conflicting, and poor-quality evidence about dietary supplements and complementary treatments such as MSM (Methylsulfonylmethane), supplements Rosehip and curcumin (the active ingredient in turmeric) are used by people living with arthritis to relieve symptoms. Further research is needed to understand whether any of these supplements may be beneficial and safe.
Also, there is still no solid evidence that fish oil supplements can provide any benefit for arthritis, but you should include oily fish in your diet (at least two portion of fish per week, including one portion of oily fish, in a healthy diet tips for the general population
1.4. Arthritis what to eat and what to eat? Blood is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and it is important to try to adopt healthy diets that can help lower blood cholesterol and cardiovascular disease risk and maintain weight. including at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables, more starchy foods (choose whole grains or higher fiber varieties with less fat, salt, and sugar), dairy and alternatives substitute dairy (choose lower-fat and lower-sugar) as well as beans, legumes, fish, eggs, lean meat and other protein sources. level and includes regular physical activity.
A healthy diet includes plenty of fiber-containing foods such as nuts, whole grains, beans, legumes, fruits and vegetables. But to lower your cholesterol, you can also try eating oats and barley, which have a special soluble fiber called beta-glucan that can help lower blood cholesterol levels.
Reduce foods high in saturated fat in your diet such as sausages, butter, cookies, cakes, pies, cakes and fatty meats and replace them with foods containing unsaturated fats (mono and polyunsaturated), such as oily fish, avocados, nuts and seeds. and small amounts of olive, rapeseed and sunflower oils and unsaturated spreads made from them.

2. Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term inflammatory condition that causes pain, swelling, and stiffness in the joints. The hands, wrists, and feet are commonly affected, but it can affect almost any joint. This is an autoimmune condition that occurs when the body's immune system, which normally fights infections, begins to attack healthy joints. Sometimes, symptoms can get worse suddenly causing severe pain and making it difficult for you to continue with your normal daily life. Rheumatoid arthritis is associated with a number of complications and comorbidities (which often occur with another condition) such as an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis (a condition that weakens bones).
2.1. What should I eat with rheumatoid arthritis? People living with this disease often make dietary changes and follow many special diets to try to improve symptoms. There is a great deal of dietary advice available to improve symptoms but there is a lack of scientific information to support these and some of the supposed benefits of the diet remain unconfirmed.
The most common dietary patterns tried are those that may have anti-inflammatory benefits or increase antioxidant levels (see section on antioxidants below). Other dietary strategies focus on eliminating foods or food groups that may be considered the cause of symptoms.
For people living with this condition, it is important to be aware of dietary advice for which there is some evidence of benefit and limited evidence, as well as to recognize that some Suggested dietary alternatives may affect nutrient intake.
2.2. Diet with Antioxidants A diet rich in antioxidants may help reduce the risk of development and may reduce the inflammatory response in the disease that has already developed. These nutrients can be found in a healthy, balanced diet (see table below for food sources). However, the benefits of supplementing with antioxidant nutrients such as vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, and zinc are not supported by scientific trials in RA patients.
2.3. Using fish oil There is some evidence to suggest that fish oil supplements may be helpful as an adjunct to existing treatments for pain and stiffness.
The long-chain omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are reported to have anti-inflammatory properties.
While there is insufficient evidence to recommend regular omega-3 supplementation, eating at least one serving of oily fish is included in dietary advice for the general population. Oily fish (e.g. mackerel, sardines and salmon) are the best sources of these fatty acids in our diets and contain other nutrients such as vitamin D. Therefore, consuming Fish is recommended in patients with the disease, consistent with generally healthy eating recommendations (which is to eat at least two servings of fish per week, at least one of which should be oily fish; note women Pregnant women should eat no more than two servings of fish a week).

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