Foods that bring it on | Arthritis Information

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Foods, that take it away.

anyone have any luck with controlling pain with food? Does sugar cause flare ups? Nightshaeds, etc...? I have read about this several times, just wondering if anyone has personal experience with it.

Thanks!

Ali

hi

Lots of debate on this issue.  Most studies have shown that foods do not play much of a role in a flare... the ones I have read about... and they used people with moderate to severe RA. Other people swear that certain foods do.  I would say not to worry too much about it and just try to eat a good variety of foods to get needed nutrients... and take an iron free multivitamin (most iron we get from food and too much iron can cause joint pain)

Ali,

I know for me, food does affect my RA. Yes, I have read that nightshade foods should be avoided. Eggplant for one is not good for me. Also, anything that has vinegar can trigger my RA. I avoided salad dressing for a long time and when I did finally have some, I had a slight flare up but I do have salad dressing now. I believe anything in moderation is the safest. I believe we all know our own body the best so with food, it's all trial and error. My RA doctor says there's no proof that food affects RA but I do not agree. Good luck!

I haven't noticed any difference in my RA depending on what foods I eat. I do believe certain foods can have a real effect on people though. I know I can bring on a migraine by eating as few as 7 almonds, or more than 5 ounces of liver. So it wouldn't surprise me to find out that for people who have the sensitivity food can be a real issue.

If you think foods may be triggering flares, try an elimination diet. my sister has done that and discovered for her wheat is a trigger in her health, it affects her fibro and her gastro  problems.

Not sure about the food issue.  I haven't really noticed eating anything in particular causes any greater or lesser symptoms.  I do have a very helpful colleague in work who told me to eat healthier and I could solve all my joint problems..............hmm.  I do have a couple of friends who have cut out wheat because of IBS so I suppose there must be some health benefits from controlling your diet.  I agree with kathy_in_wlsv, if you think it has an effect try the elimination diet thing.

Here is some information about Foods and RA

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/rheumatoid-arthritis/AN0019 8

Here is a article on woman's health. 

Anemia and to much Iron;

http://www.4woman.gov/faq/anemia.htm#12

Information on Eating Red Meat;

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=17374

I still eat red meat, only in moderation...Infact I try to eat in moderation most of the time...I still have RA Flares but I do think it does make them less severe...

One day we will all will know the full story on Rheumatoid Arthritis, I hope that day is tomorrow.

 

 

I heard that cutting wheat out of the diet can help greatly with lessoning the pain of lupus but I do not know about RA. My friend's sister was treated for lupus or was it fibromy....(sp) and she cut wheat out of her diet and feels   sooo much better now. Pretty amazing, huh? I do believe eliminating certain foods do help me feel better. I have reacted to vinegar which can cause a lot of pain for me.

Thank you all for your replies. I do eat quite a bit of red meat. I have been limiting my wheat intake, but cheat every now and then.

 

NYALI,

I heard that red meat is not good for people with RA, so I would cut back on that. Actually, I heard, meat in general is not good for people with arthritis. But I mostly eat chicken and if I do eat steak occasionally, I do not havea reaction. I suppose anything in moderation is the best. Good luck!

I just found a website that was pretty interesting. I had read an article not long ago that dairy products were the cause of RA. This site has some very interesting information. I don't know how true it is but I think I might try to give up all dairy for awhile and see if it helps. Can't hurt?

www.notmilk.com

Lesle

Oh no! Not that again!  If that were true, we would have heard about it since The AF would be all over that and it would be in JAMA, etc.  If they knew what caused it, they could work on a cure, and we would all be hearing about it on the news even. You know what they say about believing everything you read... not a good thing to do and the internet opens the door to a lot of that bad info.  We have to be discerning about what we read.  THis site, AF, Mayo, etc... are the good ones.  Similar artilces about coffee and sugar have been debunked also... they just never end.

Please dont believe in false claims like that... the medical world is on top of this as well as the AF and colleges... so stick with their info.  There is always going to be false hope out there to hook people who want good news... but its not real. They just want you to buy a book or whatever.  I have seen that for too many years now.

Dont stop eating wheat either unless you know it bothers you.  I havent been able to eat much of it due to GI problems, and it HAS NOT helped my RA at all.  I spent a year off dairy for the GI stuff too and again... did not make a difference except for  not getting proper nutrition.  Nutrition is SO important for us with the medications we take and the disease too.  If you guys are lucky enough to be able to eat wheat and dairy... dont stop.  I have bone loss from Prednisone and deficiencies elsewhere.  Its so important to eat a balance of all foods.  (of course we know individually if a certain food bothers us as stated above)  I just worry that people might hold on to false hopes with this.  Eat well!

Haven't noticed any foods that trigger any kind of pain with me

Susan

 

There is so much literature on what does and what doesn't affect certain diseases, we can never be sure of what the real truths are.

For me, I like to think that the Medical Arena is the first place we should begin but I also know that there are certain things we should be doing for our selves, to help reduce some possible risks attributed to certain diseases and help with some diseases that we may already have.

1. Do not smoke.

2. Keep alcohol beverages to a minimum or do not drink at all.

3. Exercise:  Always ask your medical professional, as to what type of exercises he/she may suggest for you.

4. Eat a balanced meal, if you are able to, if not, discussion your nutritional needs with your health care provider

This link will take you to a article on Dietary Guidelines for Healthy American Diets. ( I think these guide lines may be appropriate for our fellow members who live in other countries but I would check your countries specific guidelines.)

http://search.netscape.com/ns/boomframe.jsp?query=Dietary+Pl anning++guidelines&page=1&offset=0&result_url=re dir%3Fsrc%3Dwebsearch%26requestId%3Dd3e70d40fe5a6c93%26click edItemRank%3D2%26userQuery%3DDietary%2BPlanning%2B%2Bguideli nes%26clickedItemURN%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.americanheart. org%252Fpresenter.jhtml%253Fidentifier%253D4561%26invocation Type%3D-%26fromPage%3DNSCPResultsT%26amp%3BampTest%3D1&r emove_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.americanheart.org%2Fpresenter.jht ml%253Fidentifier%253D4561

5.  Drink Water, at least 6 to 8 glasses a day.  (to much water may leach out needed nutrients)

6.  Be knowledgeable about the medical problems you have. (read as much information as you can that pertains to your health but at the same time make sure the information that you are getting is reliable information).

7.  Add some humor to your life:  Even in adversity, we should take time out for a good laugh.

Your best offense for a good response for your particular needs, is having a good understanding and co-operation between your medical provider and yourself.  Working together as a team brings forth the best results.

 

Hoping everyone has a great weekend.

Toni

waddles38689.3714236111Has anyone heard of milk bringing on RA? Does anyone believe that? If you get a chance check out www.notmilk.com

That www.notmilk.com site is pretty freaky dont ya think. I don't know what to think about it.

Lesle

It is weird but what the heck. I'll try anything. I am going to have my son stop for 6 months and see what happens.i love milk and it doesnt affect my ra at all.  although i have a friend with jra and she doesnt eat lettuce, cabbage, or watermelon because she gets bad flare ups 2 days later.

[QUOTE=Teech7]It is weird but what the heck. I'll try anything. I am going to have my son stop for 6 months and see what happens.[/QUOTE]

Talk to your doc, especially when it involves a child.  Developmentally, your son may need that calcium, so if your doc thinks it's a good idea to try taking him off milk he may prescribe supplements or have him add other dairy or high calcium items into his diet.

I havent really noticed anything the causes me to have flare ups except coffee. I think that food plays a definitate role, but it's individual.

For me, I can eat eggplant /tomatoes (nightshades) until the cows come home, but once they do, and I consume dairy I'm done.

I love cheese etc., but I can't eat it. If I have a wonderful cheese pizza I am in awful shape the next day. I was vegan for years since I thought it was animal protein, but learned recently that it's only dairy as far as I can tell.

Oh, also coffee. That was tough to give up, however I have not had a cup in months.


Aw, what a cruel taskmaster RA is. In addition to the obvious trials, I had to give up my two favorite foods! I wonder how frequent this is, with other items.

Mark
Mark

I don't belive dairy is the cause.  I stay away from most dairy as I am lactose interl.  And I don't eat much red meat at all.  Science still has a bunch of research to do--I think. 

No doubt in my mind that certain foods affect my RA.

If I have one strawberry or eat anything that has been peppered  I am in for a bad flare up. Not maybe I will flare up. I will flare up.

Try writing down what you eat for a while and see if flareups are followed by eating certain foods. I can eat red meal all the time and get no flare ups. Others on this site flare up after eating red meat.

 

 

[QUOTE=NYALI]

Foods, that take it away.


<FONT face="Times New Roman">anyone have any luck with controlling pain with food? Does sugar cause flare ups? Nightshaeds, etc...? I have read about this several times, just wondering if anyone has personal experience with it.


<FONT face="Times New Roman">Thanks!


<FONT face="Times New Roman">Ali

[/QUOTE] Hi all,
I'm new to this forum, and since I am a nutritionist, I naturally gravitated
to this section first. My focus in grad school was nutritional etiology, and
many posters are correct in that there are no significant etiological
studies regarding the role that diet plays in RA. the fact that there are
few large scale studies doesn't mean that there is not connection, simply
that there have been no studies that show it.

While our physicians are very highly educated and know their drugs and
treatment protocols, no one knows our bodies as well as we do. If you
were to try an elimination diet, and found that some food group, say
gluten grains or cow dairy increased your symptoms, then you can choose
to avoid those foods. (ps there are many other foods that provide
calcium and are much healthier for people who have inflammatory
diseases). Trust yourself as well as your doctor to know what may or may
not be helping or exacerbating your symptoms. If you find that a food
group plays some negative role, consult a licensed RD or nutritionist with
university credendials to help you replace what ever nutrients you might
be missing.

enough for now-my hands get numb

ps newly diagnosed-not on drugs yetI believe there is a very strong corelation between what you eat and RA. In my case all the nightshades drive me crazy especially tomatoes. Periodically I detox my body by doing a juice fast for 2 days and I feel incredible with almost no signs of RA, then after starting back up the symtoms return, mainly pain in the knees and other joints. A chiropractor recommended the book called the paleo diet or something very similiar that talks about the problems with grains. Everyone talks about the benefits of fish oils and or omega oils which have proven to help arthritis so I would strongly recommend trying to hold back on foods then reintroducing them over time and see if you see a difference. Can you tell me more about the juices???I have changed my diet because of ra because I want to do anything I can to be healthier.  I eat fish 3-4 days a week with brown rice and cut back on wheat and sugar and nightshades.  I also drink tons of herbal teas.   It is difficult to completely remove wheat and sugar when you are on pred.    because I have terrible cravings.  Lately I have been concerned about all the fish I have been eating because of concerns about mercury and ra.  Very frustrating.  So, moderation and getting lots of good  variety and nutrients is what I am going with.  A friend kept tell ing me to cut out wheat which I found really hard to do, but I did it eventually to see if it would have any effect.  I did feel  better  (and dropped a dress size!!) in two weeks.  Anyway, I got fed up and started eating wheat again, in the shape of a  lovely cheese  and ham toasted granary sandwich .... and the day after starting to eat wheat again I  couldn't move!!!   Wheat does seem to be involved for me but I can eat some  dairy.    annie

not sure if what I eat makes my RA worst. just know I hurt
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