Food For Your Healing

When discussing food for arthritis there is one thing that is certain…Omega-3 fatty acids are the healing ingredient that powers these foods.

By seeking out foods high in these essential fats you can drastically reduce the aches and pains associated with this debilitating health condition.

Omega-3 fatty acids are so essential to the diet of an arthritis patient because it has been clinically proven that Omega-3 fatty acids have anti-inflammatory properties that directly address the painful inflammation caused by rheumatoid arthritis.

It does this by producing high levels of what are known as prostaglandins and leukotrienes in the body.

These fatty acids that foods good for arthritis contain also help to ensure that the cartilage around the site of the arthritis is not damaged or destroyed.  Not only does this reduce pain but also reduces the speed at which this condition progresses.

The diets of Mediterranean cultures are particularly abundant in foods that are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, and it has been shown that these populations also have significantly fewer citizens who are suffering from arthritis.

Fish

The best sources for Omega-3 fatty acids are the fresh fish that you can find at any local seafood grocer.

While most fish contain some proportion of these compounds, the best fish for arthritis patients are fish that are particularly rich and oily, such as salmon, mackerel, tuna and sardines.

With the wide variety of fish that are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids on the market, there are plenty of healthy options to eating red meat that will have you enjoying your meals while alleviating your symptoms of arthritis.

Black Currants

After fish, black currants rank 2nd on our list of food for arthritis as these berries in particular have an extensively well documented ability to lower the inflammation that is at the root of most arthritis symptoms and work great if you suffer from rheumatoid arthritis.

Black currants contain a very rare essential fatty acid with strong anti-inflammatory properties known as Gamma-Linolenic Acid or GLA.

Black currants also contain what are known as anthocyanins.  Anthocyanins are antioxidant flavonoids which are synthesized through the phenylpropanoid pathway in plants.

The benefit of anthocyanins in the treatment of arthritis is that these compounds inhibit the two major enzymes that cause joint inflammation in the body.

These are the enzymes cyclooxygenase-1, COX-1, and cyclooxygenase-2,COX-2.

The best form of black currants to eat is as an oil, i.e black currant seed oil, or as a juice extract as these forms contain the highest amounts of gamma-linolenic acid and anthocyanins.

If you have trouble locating fresh black currants in your area, any ethnic grocer that caters to Eastern Europeans will certainly carry juices made from concentrated black currants that will more than suffice.

You can also find black currant seed oil in capsule form as a dietary supplement.  These capsules typically contain at least 45 mg of GLA.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

We’ve all heard that this oil is good for us, but it can be extremely beneficial when it comes to arthritis sufferers.

Olive oil is loaded with “good fat” that make it fall into the list of foods good for arthritis.

The antioxidants that are prevalent in extra virgin olive oil are called polyphenols, and as you know by now these are particularly helpful with reducing inflammation.

Therefore by consuming olive oil every day you can significantly reduce the inflammation that is associated with your arthritis.

It is quite easy to find creative ways to incorporate olive oil into your daily diet. It can be used as the perfect cooking oil every night or become the basis of your salad dressing.

But be sure not to go overboard! Just a few teaspoons of olive oil per day are sufficient to harness this oil’s great healing power.

Nuts and Seeds

In addition to tasty, fresh foods, arthritis sufferers are advised to start including more nuts and seeds into their diet due to their high concentration of, you guessed it, Omega-3 fatty acids.

Nuts and seeds present arthritis sufferers with a particularly convenient way to get your daily dose of Omega-3 fatty acids into your system because you can munch on them throughout the day while you are on the go.

So try tossing in a handful of cashews or sunflower seeds into a midday salad. This is a great way to get these healthy compounds into your diet.

A little bit here and there throughout the day really adds up.

Garlic

Another great way to incorporate anti-inflammatory foods into your daily diet is to really dive into the world of cooking with garlic.

Garlic’s anti-inflammatory properties are legendary, and there are few foods that are healthy for you and taste so good.

Garlic works particularly well at alleviating arthritis symptoms due to compounds that are present in the cloves that inhibit the production of lipoxygenase and cyclooxygenase, two enzymes responsible for arthritis inflammation.

Onion also has these same anti-inflammatory properties.

Sweet Peppers

If you are a lover of peppers, then you are already well on your way to avoiding or keeping your arthritis to a minimum.

Peppers in all colors are loaded with Vitamin C, a key component of the cartilage in your joints.

For those of you that already suffer from this disease, a healthy dose of Vitamin C can therefore ensure that the painful inflammation is kept to a minimum.

By maintaining this cartilage you can also prevent the development of arthritis in the first place.

So consider an increase in the color of your diet with orange, yellow, or green peppers making excellent choices.

Ginger and Turmeric

No discussion of food for arthritis is complete without a discussion of spices.

Long before spices like ginger and turmeric were regularly used for flavoring food, they were valuable commodities that were treasured for their medicinal properties.

While herbalists claim that both ginger and turmeric have a number of medicinal benefits, scientific studies have also proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that they have significant anti-inflammatory properties.

As these two pack a unique flavor to food, ginger and turmeric can be incorporated into your meals in a variety of fun ways to ensure you get it in as much as possible.

So try replacing unhealthy flavorings, like processed sugar and excess salt, with delicious anti-inflammatory spices like ginger and turmeric, making the much needed switch to a more joint friendly diet.

As every arthritis patient knows, arthritis can be a debilitating condition with symptoms that seem to fluctuate depending upon your physical environment and diet.

While there is not much that a patient can do to avoid the extra aches and pains that come with inclement weather, there are a handful of changes that you can make to your daily diet that have been proven to drastically alleviate the symptoms of arthritis.

The cornerstone to any well planned diet that targets arthritis is including the proper amount of Omega-3 fatty acids in every balanced meal.

If you can manage to avoid eating foods like dairy products, red meats and certain grains while replacing with them with some of the tasty healthy food for arthritis listed above, you may find that you experience an almost immediate change in your arthritis symptoms.

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