Arthritis and Diet

At some point in life, most people will suffer from some form of arthritis, or swelling of the joints. There are several forms of arthritis - most occur in the elderly, but some can affect people in the prime of life, or even children. In tackling arthritis, general good health is an important factor - and good health, of course, requires a good diet.

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The basics of a healthy diet for arthritis sufferers are the same as they are for anybody else - a balance of foods with plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables and not too much fat or refined sugar - yet there are also other factors which arthritis patients should consider. Weight gain is a serious problem for many people with arthritis. It can occur because arthritis medications increase appetite and water retention, and also because arthritis sufferers, as a result of their joint pain, find it harder to get exercise. As a heavier body means that there is more pressure on joints during exercise, this can become a vicious circle. It is therefore especially important for people with arthritis to manage their weight carefully through diet. This means controlling calorie intake - for a person who is mostly sedentary due to arthritis, the recommended daily amount of kilocalories may be as much as 400 less than the average recommended by the World Health Organisation (2,000 for a woman or 2,500 for a man). Of course, many arthritis sufferers already suffer from fatigue and may find this gets worse when they try to cut down calorie intake. The way to work around this is to have a diet rich in fresh fruit and fruit juice which can perk you up if you feel tired. Citrus fruit (orange, lemon, lime and grapefruit) also acts as an astringent and can potentially reduce fluid retention in joints.

When managing weight gain with arthritis, it's important to manage fluid balance. Some arthritis medications cause patients to feel thirsty all the time and to retain more water in their bodies than usual, which can lead to dangerous complications like high blood pressure. A healthy amount of fluid for the average person to drink per day is 1.5 litres. Ideally, this should be plain water or fruit juice. Remember that soda also needs to be taken into consideration in a calorie-counting diet - many people consume as many as 1,000 kilocalories in soda per day. It's all the more important for arthritis sufferers to be careful about this as there is some evidence that too much refined sugar in the diet can make arthritis worse. Salt can also be a problem for some arthritis sufferers and can increase the risk of high blood pressure. A healthy diet should contain fewer than five grams of salt per day.

Because most forms of arthritis are caused by problems with the immune system, food allergies can often make arthritis worse. Many people don't even know they have these allergies, and the only way to find out is to cut one potential problem food out of your diet at a time to see if your arthritis improves. Common allergens in cases of arthritis are caffeine, dairy produce, chocolate, red meat and tomatoes. There is some evidence that a diet high in potatoes or alfalfa can also trigger arthritis. Finally, arthritis sufferers should avoid drinking too much alcohol, which can exacerbate the symptoms of the disease and can potentially react with medication.