Chronic arthritis pain: unlocking the power of nutrition

Can what we eat make a difference to our health conditions? Research is certainly leaning towards the fact that diet does play a role in inflammation and musculoskeletal pain.

The most recent review of the evidence into the impact diet has on osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia analysed 32 original research papers. It revealed that musculoskeletal pain may be reduced by:

• Plant-based Mediterranean, vegetarian and vegan diets;
• Fish oils, seafood, omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidant-rich fruits and turmeric.

Eliminating aspartame (artificial sweetener) and monosodium glutamate (flavour enhancer) may reduce inflammation. There is some less convincing evidence to support adding olive oil, ginger, or herbal teas to reduce pain.

The review is limited but throws out some very interesting findings, leading to the team concluding that “clinicians can play a role in the well-being of patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain through holistic interventions such as a dietary emphasis on plant-based regimes”.

Click here to read the original research. 

PS Did you know that Arthritis Digest Magazine is labelled the best UK Arthritis blog from thousands of blogs on the web ranked by traffic, social media followers, domain authority & freshness?