Find out which food befits you when you have arthritis

Introduction:

Exhausted and worried about the pain in your joints? There are about 100 different types of arthritis and nearly 50 million adults and 3 lakh children are affected by arthritis in America alone according to the data. Doctors prescribe sedatives and also sometimes there is a surgery done. 

Do you know there are foods which trigger the pain of the joints? So, we need to have a check on what we eat and drink

Pain is caused due to inflammation of joints which leads to swelling and redness sometimes. Continue reading to know which food increase this pain and you might be disturbed and shocked to know them.

Saturated fat:

Cheese, butter and red meat all contain saturated fat. Saturated fat stimulates swelling in fat cells. This kind of inflammation is bad especially for the heart which makes arthritis even more hurtful. Red meat contains advanced glycation end products(AGEs) which activate inflammation. This end product is formed when we cook, grill, toast, fry or roast. High level of AGEs cause inflammation and lead to disease like diabetes, kidney failure, heart problems and even Alzheimer’s.

Omega-3-fatty acids:

You might have heard of Omega-3-fatty acids which are found abundantly in fish. They benefit in repressing the inflammation. Omega-6-fatty acids produce chemicals which active swelling. They are to be found in sunflower, safflower, corn and vegetable oil. It is best to avoid any food containing these oils. You can replace these with olive oil, flaxseeds, canola and walnut. Omega-6-fatty acids are also found in commercial frying oil. So, it is best to be avoided. 

Alcohol:

            Alcohol has the substance which triggers inflammation. Studies show that 5 to 10 grams of alcohol actually helps in protecting us from rheumatoid arthritis which is half a beer each day. But if have arthritis already it increases the swelling with a particular type of arthritis. Alcohol generally associates with anti-inflammatory properties. So keep a check on the level you consume alcohol.

Processed food:

            Processed food contains several items that cause swelling. Few such are trans-fat and hydrogenated oils. Specifically, hydrogenated oils tend to cause operational swelling and cause a lot of diseases from heart ailments to cancer.

Read the labels before buying any items. Trans-fat makes the food stable. You can find them in bread, baked food, snacks like potato, popcorn, fried items, refrigerated dough, margarine and non-dairy cream.

Salt:

Salt is essential for our body to operate. Still excess salt causes high blood pressure which leads to kidney problems, stroke and heart attack. Excess salt also causes calcium depletion which leads to osteoporosis. Salt causes inflammation of cells and leads to pain in the joints.

One easy way to reduce salt intake is by not eating processed food and fried items. Avoid adding extra salt to food. It takes time to adjust to it but it a much healthier way!

Sugar:

Sugar makes our body to release cytokinin which causes swelling. Sugar has a necessary consequence with a lot of diseases because of cytokinin.

Sugar increases inflammation and pain during arthritis. Sugar is in many forms almost about 56 different names like sucrose, fructose, maltose etc. The -ose in sucrose, syrup and malt labels for sugar.

Artificial sweeteners must not be taken often. They lead to many diseases, cancer and also inflammation.

 

Refined grains:

Refined grains include white rice and white flour. These make blood glucose level spike leading to inflammation. In addition to this, if you are gluten sensitive wheat products can also cause joint pain. To know whether you are gluten sensitive eat them and if you tend to get any rashes, migraines, fatigue or joint pain then you are gluten sensitive.

            Refined sugars are easily digestible. We digest them like sucrose. It is best to avoid foods from wheat flour. Whereas, wholegrain decreases joint pain and swelling. Therefore it is advised to shift to whole grains from refined grains.

Night Shades:

They are a group of vegetables which contain solanine. Studies show that vegetables with solanine can stimulate arthritis pain. So, removing them from your diet can help in reducing the pain and might improve the symptoms in some people.

Some vegetables which contain solanine are bell pepper, tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant and chilli pepper. It is advised that people who have nightshades may show symptoms one at a time after a couple of weeks. You can also keep a food diary to keep track of which food suits you and which isn't.

Foods which you can Eat:

Here are a few foods which are suggested to eat when you have arthritis.

*Unsaturated fats like olive oil, oil from seeds and nuts, avocado oil and extra virgin oil.

*Omega-3-fatty acids are abundant in salmons and sardines.

*Vegetables like onions, garlic and leeks which reduce cartilage damage;

sweet potatoes, carrots, squash which has antioxidants and reduce the risk of rheumatoid arthritis;

green leafy vegetable;

citrus fruits, kiwi, strawberries which have vitamin C which helps in protecting bone and cartilage.

Others:

Have a low impact exercise which helps the patients remain active without causing pain to joints. It is recommended to walk, swim or cycle.

Particular cooking methods release more nutrients from food than others like steaming than boiling, shallow frying than deep frying which is easier to absorb nutrients by our body.

Vitamin D is vital for bones because it helps in absorbing calcium. Though there are some foods which have vitamin D, the better way to get adequate vitamin D is from sun exposure.

Conclusion:

To conclude everything we crave for will worsen arthritis. The medicines you take can damage the liver in order to deal with the pain. Reduce or you can completely stop using foods that trigger inflammation.

            You can replace it with other good items. There are foods that fight against swelling. You will not have the pain and reduce swelling from your body. Arthritis is a degenerative disease which means you cannot reverse it. But, definitely, you can lessen the pain by cutting down unhealthy food.