Is There Any Links Between Osteoarthritis And Diet
Q) I would like to know whether any research findings suggest links between osteoarthritis and diet. I am a 66-year-old active retired teacher. I had a total hip replacement in August 2011 and have recovered well. My surgeon has told me that it is likely I will require another hip replacement on the other hip in about five years although at present I am not experiencing any hip pain. I hope that exercise, weight control and sensible eating plus supplements such as glucosamine and fish oil will help to slow the progression of the disease. What does the latest medical research say about nutritional therapy which claims that avoidance of specific foods that cause food sensitivities can relieve the pain and inflammation caused by osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis? To put it simply, can food heal me?
This answer was provided by Dr Philip Helliwell in 2013, and was correct at the time of publication.
Alcohol Could Further Raise Your Heart
Heavy drinking can make you more prone to metabolic syndrome, a group of conditions that puts you at higher risk for heart disease. Both heart disease and metabolic syndrome are already more common in PsA patients anyway, thanks to underlying inflammation, says Dr. Ansari-Ali. So while an occasional drink may be fine, you could be increasing your risk for heart disease and other health problems later on if you regularly overdo it.
Alcohol Abuse Can Weaken The Immune System
Alcohol can impair the immune system. This can make it more difficult for the body to heal itself.
For a person with a condition that causes joint pain, this could make it harder for the body to combat the conditions that trigger pain. For acute injuries, such as sprains or falls, that cause joint pain, this could potentially slow down the healing process, causing the pain to last longer.
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What Vitamins Can I Take For Osteoarthritis
Q) Im 26 years old and have been diagnosed with osteoarthritis in my thumb in my left hand. What vitamins can I take to help prevent getting this problem in the future? I feel very young to have this. Also, should I wear a thumb splint/compression support all the time?
Any advice would be great. I’m very new to this and have no one to ask.
Kym – 2018
A) Its unlikely that youll be deficient in any vitamins if you eat a normal balanced diet, so supplements probably wont make a difference to your symptoms or to the longer-term outlook for your thumb.
With thumb osteoarthritis it’s important to work on joint stability and the range of movement. When a joint is affected by osteoarthritis the muscles that surround the joint can become weaker and lose their bulk very quickly. This can make the joint less stable, which is a problem when it comes to the function of the thumb, and it also causes pain.
Using exercises that work on increasing the strength of overall grip, pinch grip and other thumb movements will be beneficial. Changing your approach to lifting and carrying things to spread the load across your hands and arms can also make a big difference, reducing strain through the thumb.
Splints can be useful to protect the joint, particularly if you’re experiencing a flare-up of pain or are doing a lot of activities that use the thumb, but I wouldnt recommend using them all the time.
Causes Of Arthritis Flare
Many flares follow changes or reductions in treatment and may signal that the new treatment isn’t effective. Watch for a flare any time you change your treatment regimen.
Other causes of flares can vary by the arthritis type. Broadly speaking, many osteoarthritis flares are related to conditions or events that directly affect the joint. Autoimmune arthritis flares are largely related to conditions or events that affect the immune system and cause an inflammatory response.
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Alcohol Use And Autoimmune Diseases
Symptoms of certain autoimmune diseases that cause joint pain, such as celiac disease, lupus, and rheumatoid arthritis, could potentially be aggravated by alcohol.
Grain-based alcohols, such as those that are made with wheat, barley, and rye, may cause flare-ups of joint pain in people with these diseases. Beer, vodka and certain types of whiskey frequently contain these grains.
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Even low to moderate amounts of alcohol may cause problems for a person with joint pain. People who use alcohol, especially chronic, heavy drinkers, may experience their symptoms more heavily.
For a person with an existing alcohol use disorder, such as someone who struggles with alcoholism, alcohol addiction treatment can give them an excellent chance to overcome harmful patterns of drinking that are damaging their health. These positive steps may help a person gain sobriety and reduce alcohol-related joint pain.
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How Much Alcohol Consumption Is Safe For People With Joint Pain
Theres no definite amount of recommended alcohol consumption if you suffer from joint pain. There are various elements to take into consideration, including the cause of your joint pain and how your body responds when you do have a drink. Inform your doctor of any reactions or notable symptoms so that they can determine the best course of action for you.
Prepare Ahead Of Time
Keep track of when your flares happen so you can learn to identify triggers. If you think, for example, that weather affects your flares, OA patients need to prepare accordingly and use OTC pain meds, Dr. Bose says. In addition, RA patients should stay compliant with their medication regimen. If you suspect your diet could be a culprit, monitor what foods youre eating, says Karen Jacobs, EdD, OT, OTR, CPE, FAOTA, an occupational therapist who works with arthritis patients and a clinical professor at Boston University.
Have a plan for when flares inevitably occur. Jacobs says to arrange ahead of time with your employer to work from home or make other adjustments if needed. An inflammatory arthritis patient will often, in time, have a sense of whether they are starting to flare, Dr. Ashany says.
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What Causes Gout To Flare Up
Gout is a complex form of arthritis that can flare up suddenly and severely. It occurs as a result of having high levels of uric acid, which makes it easier for urate crystals to form. These sharp crystals can deposit in your joints, causing inflammation, swelling and pain.
“The most common trigger of gout is eating purine-rich foods, since high levels of purines can increase the amount of uric acid in your bloodstream,” explains Dr. Alam.
Gout-sufferers can help avoid flare-ups by avoiding foods rich in purines, including:
- Certain types of seafood, including tuna, scallops and trout
- Alcohol, particularly beer
- Fruit juices and other beverages that contain fructose
“Similar to rheumatoid arthritis, a flare-up of gout can be alleviated by using a cold compress on the affected joint, which helps reduce the inflammation that’s causing your pain, swelling and stiffness,” says Dr. Alam.
What Causes Rheumatoid Arthritis To Flare Up
Rheumatoid arthritis is one of the more sinister forms of arthritis. Not only can the damage to your joints lead to swelling, stiffness and pain, there’s no way to undo it aka, it’s permanent.
With rheumatoid arthritis, there’s likely always some low level of inflammation affecting your joints, but it can also flare up in response to stress or, believe or not, the weather specifically, rain.
“When you’re stressed, either mentally or physically, your body is less equipped to handle the inflammation caused by your condition,” explains Dr. Alam. “Since it leads to swelling and stiffness, more inflammation means more intense pain.”
As for why a change in weather might trigger a flare up of rheumatoid arthritis, it’s all about joints under pressure.
“Changes in weather, such as rain, are often accompanied by changes in air pressure, and this change is thought to affect the pressure within your joints making any underlying swelling feel more painful,” explains Dr. Alam.
While you can’t control the weather, you can take steps to reduce your stress levels. And when a flare up hits, you can use a cold compress to reduce the inflammation that’s causing some of your pain.
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Other Ways Alcohol Can Affect Arthritis Management
Without doing further damage to your joints or promoting medication side effects, alcohol may interfere with other ways of lessening arthritis pain. For example, your doctor will want you to get the best nights sleep possible, since most people with rheumatoid arthritis experience problems with sleep. University of Pennsylvania researchers found that RA patients with low-quality sleep are in more pain, more depressed, and function less well than those who sleep better. Alcohol may make you drowsy, but it messes with sleep quality, says Dr. Manno.
In addition, because alcohol has lots of calories, and many cocktails are loaded with added sugar, drinking can make it more difficult to achieve other goals that ease pain and improve function: building muscle mass, reducing body fat, and losing weight.
Alcohol Abuse Can Aggravate A Preexisting Condition Or Disease That Causes Joint Pain
A variety of illnesses and diseases can cause joint pain that ranges from mild to severe. This pain may be accompanied by inflammation, swelling and tenderness. With certain illnesses and diseases, alcohol abuse may cause a persons condition to become more severe.
Joint pain caused by the following conditions may be exacerbated by alcohol abuse:
- other types of arthritis
- rheumatoid arthritis
Individuals with these conditions may want to consider speaking to their doctor prior to consuming alcohol, this could be especially true if they take any pain relievers or other medications to manage their symptoms.
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How Is Gout Treated
Gout can be effectively treated and managed with medical treatment and self-management strategies. Your health care provider may recommend a medical treatment plan to
- Manage the pain of a flare. Treatment for flares consists of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen, steroids, and the anti-inflammatory drug colchicine.
- Prevent future flares. Making changes to your diet and lifestyle, such as losing weight, limiting alcohol, eating less purine-rich food , may help prevent future attacks. Changing or stopping medications associated with hyperuricemia may also help.
- Prevent tophi and kidney stones from forming as a result of chronic high levels of uric acid. Tophi are hard, uric acid deposits under the skin. For people with frequent acute flares or chronic gout, doctors may recommend preventive therapy to lower uric acid levels in the blood using drugs like allopurinol, febuxostat, and pegloticase.
In addition to medical treatment, you can manage your gout with self-management strategies. Self-management is what you do day to day to manage your condition and stay healthy, like making healthy lifestyle choices. The self-management strategies described below are proven to reduce pain and disability, so you can pursue the activities important to you.
Can Alcohol Reduce Ra Symptoms
Some small research studies suggest that drinking moderate alcohol could reduce RA symptoms, possibly because alcohol reduces certain types of inflammation. However, more research is needed to uncover the true effects of alcohol on RA symptoms.
A showed that moderate alcohol consumption may reduce the severity of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease .
However, a 2018 study of 188 people with early RA found no difference in the severity of joint inflammation when the researchers examined their MRI scan results. They suggested the anti-inflammatory effects of alcohol could be systemic and not involve the joints specifically.
However, the say that nobody should start drinking alcohol for any potential health benefits. Alcohol can cause short- and long-term health problems, even if it does not exacerbate symptoms of RA.
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Drinking May Interfere With Your Medication
Alcohol may reduce your medications effectiveness, which could decrease your response to treatment, according to the National Psoriasis Foundation. Drinking can also increase your risk of side effects. For instance, consuming alcohol when youre taking something as seemingly harmless as over-the-counter pain relievers like aspirin, Tylenol or Advil ups your chances of having a faster heartbeat, upset stomach, bleeding, and stomach ulcers.
How To Safely Stop Drinking Alcohol
Although it may sound simple to limit or altogether quit drinking alcohol, it can be difficult for those whove developed a physical dependence on alcohol or those struggling with alcoholism. When a person can one can no longer control their drinking, compulsively abuses alcohol despite its negative ramifications, and/or experiences emotional distress when they are not drinking, they may have an alcohol use disorder .8
Acute alcohol withdrawal can occur when a consistently heavy drinker suddenly stops after a period of time.9 Left unmanaged, users may experience uncomfortable and potentially severe symptoms when attempting to quit.9 Some symptoms may develop as soon as 8 hours after the last time alcohol is consumed.9
Additional withdrawal symptoms, depending on the magnitude of physical dependence, may continue to arise beyond 24 hours, with some potentially severe effects emerging in the range of 2 to 4 days after abstinence.9
Symptoms may include:9,10
- Delirium tremens.
Severe withdrawal symptoms may include cardiac rhythm disturbances, markedly altered mental status, psychomotor agitation, and continuous grand mal seizures.9 A professionally supervised medical detox can help minimize the risk of severe complications and discomfort associated with acute alcohol withdrawal.9
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Tips To Prevent Gout Flares
- Avoid drinking all types of alcohol.
- Drink plenty of water and stay hydrated.
- Eat a well-balanced diet low in purines, including fruits, nuts, most vegetables, and rice.
- Exercise regularly, and focus on low-impact options during flares.
- Maintain a healthy weight.
- Set aside time for relaxation and to manage stress.
- Talk to a healthcare professional about medications that may increase the risk of gout.
- Treat other health conditions that may occur with gout.
How Much Alcohol Is Safe
The benefits in these studies were only seen with moderate drinking. Itâs never a good idea to drink too much. For women, experts say that one drink a day is usually safe. A drink is 12 ounces of beer, 5 ounces of wine, or 1.5 ounces of liquor. For men, itâs usually safe to have two drinks a day.
If you donât drink or drink very little, experts say you shouldnât start or drink more because you think it may be good for you. But if you have RA and you like to relax with an alcoholic drink, you probably donât need to stop.
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Foods To Avoid With Ra
Red meat and dairy
Theyâre our main sources of saturated fats, which can cause inflammation in fat tissue. Other sources include full-fat dairy products, pasta dishes, and grain-based desserts.
Corn oil
The culprit here is omega-6 fatty acids. You want to cut down on them while youâre going for more omega-3s. They can lead to weight gain and joint inflammation if you overdo it. Sunflower, safflower, soy, and vegetable oils are also sources.
Fried food, fast food, and processed foods
Theyâre the major source of trans fats, which are created when hydrogen is added to vegetable oil to extend shelf life. They can trigger inflammation throughout your body. Plus, they raise bad cholesterol and lower the good type.
Salt
Not only is too much salt bad for your blood pressure, but if you have RA and take steroids, your body may hold on to it more easily. Aim for less than 1,500 milligrams a day.
It tells your body to release chemicals called cytokines that kick-start the inflammation process. Check food labels for words that end in âose,â like fructose or sucrose.
Alcohol
It doesnât mix well with your RA meds. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen and naproxen can cause stomach bleeding and ulcers on their own. Those odds go up when you add alcohol.
If you drink while youâre taking acetaminophen, leflunomide , or methotrexate, it could damage your liver.
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Packing On The Pounds
Being overweight can impact psoriatic arthritis in several ways. First, we now know that fat cells release multiple proteins, including adipokines, which have pro-inflammatory activity and can make the inflammation of psoriatic arthritis harder to control, says Susan M. Goodman, MD, a rheumatologist at Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City.
Second, the impact of being overweight on the weight-bearing joints will accelerate damage, Dr. Goodman says.
If youre overweight, losing as little as 5 percent of your baseline weight can go a long way in controlling inflammation. To keep your weight in check, remember that a healthy body weight results from a balance between calories consumed and calories expended. While theres no easy solution to maintaining a healthy weight, portion control and exercise are the best sustainable methods, Goodman says.
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Does Alcohol Affect Inflammation
Inflammation causes the symptoms of RA, including joint pain, stiffness, and fatigue. Heavy alcohol use can increase inflammation in the body, while moderate drinking may actually reduce inflammation.
A 2015 review states that moderate drinking can reduce certain inflammation markers, including c-reactive protein, interleukin-6, and tumor necrosis factor -alpha receptor 2. On the other hand, excessive drinking can increase inflammation.
When a person drinks too much, the alcohol can damage the gut and liver, leading to body-wide inflammation. Scientists alcohol-related medical conditions with chronic inflammation.
However, alcohol should not negatively affect people with RA when taken in moderation.