Healthy Eating for Women

Most of us take for granted that we’ll stay strong and healthy, able to do whatever we’d like for years to come. But when arthritis enters our lives, even the slightest movement becomes painful, sometimes impossible. It hurts to shake hands. It’s hard to open a jar or write with a pen, and it feels like we are on a one-way street to the infirmities of old age.

If joint pain has slowed you down, you’ll want to look at the latest from the world of nutrition. Research shows that for a surprising number of people, a few simple diet changes can make joint problems improve—or even disappear altogether. The disease comes in a great many forms, so let’s start with a look at what kind of arthritis you have. Here are the most common types:

(more…)

Share This

Over the past two decades, researchers have slowly but surely nailed down evidence that foods play an important role in rheumatoid arthritis and other forms of the disease. First came surprising reports of individuals who were essentially cured after making rather minor adjustments in their diets. In 1981 the British Medical Journal reported the case of a woman who had suffered with rheumatoid arthritis for twenty-five years before discovering that her symptoms were caused by corn.

(more…)

Share This

These foods have been commonly found in research studies to trigger arthritis symptoms:

dairy products
corn
meats
wheat, oats, rye
eggs
citrus fruits
potatoes
tomatoes
nuts and peanuts
coffee

Dairy products are the most common trigger, as is also true for migraines (see chapter 11). This means all dairy products, including skim or whole cow’s milk, goat’s milk, cheese, yogurt, etc. Similarly, the meat category includes all meats: beef, pork, chicken, turkey, fish, etc. While this list applies principally to rheumatoid arthritis, people with other forms of the disease sometimes benefit from eliminating these triggers, too.

(more…)

Share This

Remember the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz? He stood with frozen joints until Dorothy loosened him up with a drop or two of oil. Surprising as it may sound, certain natural food oils act like gentle medicines, easing your joints and giving you extra power against arthritis. Don’t even think about them, though, if you haven’t first checked for food triggers. If, for example, your arthritis is triggered by milk products, it is much more effective to eliminate them than to try to counteract their effects by adding oils—or medications, for that matter.

(more…)

Share This

Would you like more power against arthritis? There are other gentle and natural approaches to arthritis you should know about. Ginger. This has been used for centuries in traditional Indian ayurvedic medicine as an arthritis treatment. Modern science has shown how it works: Ginger blocks the enzymes that spark inflammation.

(more…)

Share This

If you have gout, you will likely need medicines, perhaps even hospitalization. But you should also look at two parts of your diet that can increase the risk of gout. Meats, especially shellfish, sardines, anchovies, and organ meats (e.g., liver and kidneys), and alcohol, especially beer, encourage uric acid to deposit in your joints, causing the misery of gout. Steer clear of these foods and build your diet from vegetables, grains, and fruits. Be sure to stay on your medications during the transition, however, since gout sometimes strikes during times of dietary change.

(more…)

Share This