Rheumatoid Arthritis

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Beneficial Foods

28.     Eating primarily plant-based vegetarian foods could be the key to life free from all kinds of lifestyle diseases.  If you are not willing to sit down and change the way you live each day to include exercise, healthy eating and time to enjoy and nurture yourself with relaxation and adequate sleep, then it is very hard to get rid of the disease and be healthy.  Make your diet a lifestyle change and not just a month or so long foray.  Above all, arthritic and other patients should make every effort to develop a positive and cheerful attitude in their thinking and have faith in themselves that they can achieve a healthy body, mind and soul.  Learn to let go of negative emotions, such as anxiety, hostility and insecurity connected with longstanding issues that can’t be resolved.  Love and learn to celebrate your own body for what it is and the fitness and health you can achieve.

29.     The following foods have been found to be beneficial for the majority of rheumatoid as well as osteo-arthritis patients:

(i)      Vegetables  —  Green leafy vegetables like spinach, mustard leaves/stems, fenugreek (methi) leaves, turnip and beet greens, lettuce, endive, watercress, leeks, parsley, celery; cruciferrous vegetables like broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage; kale; carrots; radish; pumpkin; lady finger (bhindi); asparagus; turnips; squash; peas; beans; fully ripe red tomatoes; long peppers; cucumber; wheatgrass juice; seaweed, kelp, spirulina.

(ii)      Fruits  —  All ripe fresh fruits (except non-citrus) including apples (also custard apple); pineapple; bananas; mangoes; grapes especially red; all berries especially cherries and blueberries; avocado; guava; pomegranate; papaya; dates;  figs.

(iii)     Dried Fruits  —  Figs, dates, prunes, raisins and currants are extremely beneficial so long as they are sun-dried and not treated with sulphur.  Patients with kidney problems should seek advice from their naturo-food therapist.

(iv)     Wholegrains  —  Whole sprouted pulses, lentils, soya and other beans and peas in moderation; millet; brown rice; rolled oats; wheatgerm.

(v)     Oils/Fats  —  Consume more of mono-unsaturated fats like olive oil, canola oil and extremely less of inflammatory Omega6-rich poly-unsaturated fats like sunflower oil, corn oil, soyabean oil and saturated animal origin fats like butter, ghee.  Totally refrain from highly harmful hydrogenated oils i.e. transfats.

(vi)     Omega3-Rich Foods  —  Liberally consume anti-inflammatory foods containing Omega3 essential fatty acid like fish oil, such as cod liver oil, shark liver oil; oily freshwater fish such as salmon, mackerel, herring, trout, anchovies sardines, tuna; flaxseeds; walnuts; pumpkin seeds; green leafy vegetables.  Omega3 fatty acids reduce tenderness in joints and decrease morning stiffness.