Improper nutrition combined with decreased absorption of nutrients leads to progression of arthritis. This disease develops when the level of uric acid in the blood exceeds the permissible limits (for men over 420 μmol / l, for women - 350 μmol / l). The disturbance in metabolic processes leads to the fact that salts of this acid settle on the intestines, blood vessels, on the joint surfaces and damage important organs in human life.
Over time, the disease becomes chronic with frequent relapses. In the acute period, patients experience excruciating pain at the site of localization of the pathological process. A diet for arthritis helps to normalize uric acid levels and reduce the incidence of relapses.
Why diet for arthritis?
An important task of therapeutic measures is to reduce the nature, frequency of manifestations of the disease. This can be achieved by reducing the content of uric acid in the body.
The development of rheumatic attacks is caused by:
- consume large amounts of foods high in purines;
- metabolic disorder.
Diet optimization allows you to start the correct processes of assimilation and excretion of substances. Therapeutic measures aimed at eliminating the causes of the development of the disease are closely linked to compliance with the restrictions of some food addictions. Using a properly composed diet menu can slow the progression of the disease.
The food that makes up the daily diet of a person should include foods that have a large amount of substances that are beneficial to the body.
Nutritional therapy for arthritis is aimed at reducing symptomatic manifestations by removing the food components that provoke them. The products that a person eats every day have a huge effect on the state of health in general, are responsible for the chemical processes that occur in the human body throughout his life.
What not to eat with arthritis?
Based on the studies, researchers have identified a list of products that directly provoke the primary development of the disease and its further progression.
The list of what not to eat for arthritis includes:
- smoked spicy cheese and cheese product;
- cholesterol-rich meat and bone products (pulp of young animals and pigs, hooves, buldyzhki);
- meat and bone fat, ear;
- fish with a high fat content (sardines, sprat)
- pickled vegetables, pickled fruits (cabbage, watermelons, cucumbers, apples);
- hot, cold smoked products;
- legumes (peas, beans, soybeans, lentils);
- greens containing oxalic acid (spinach leaves, sorrel, rhubarb root);
- hot spices, sauces;
- some varieties of vegetable crops (Brussels sprouts and cauliflower, radishes);
- internal organs of animals obtained under carcasses (kidneys, liver, lungs, heart, brains);
- oatmeal;
- products using confectionery fat;
- alcohol of any percentage
- fruits and berries (grapes, raspberries, figs);
- hot, spicy and ethereal spices (bay leaves, horseradish, chili peppers);
- fats and oil products of animal origin (lard, margarine, lard);
- canned meat, fish and vegetable products.
If the diet is not balanced or contains a large amount of fatty, spicy or heavy meals for the digestive system, a person's metabolism may be disturbed.
The list of products whose use is recommended to be limited:
- coffee, strong tea;
- butter;
- plums;
- nightshade vegetables (eggplant, tomatoes, peppers);
- table salt, granulated sugar;
- fungi (exclusively at the time of remission).
To alleviate an attack as well as to maintain a state of remission, it is important to remove the above foods from the diet for a long time.
What can you eat with arthritis?
List of foods recommended for use by patients with this disease:
- meat products in the diet (rabbit, poultry, lean beef);
- lean white fish (pike, pike, cod, pollock);
- bran and rye bread;
- chicken eggs (excluding egg yolk);
- cereals (rice, wheat, buckwheat, millet, pearl barley);
- fresh vegetables (beets, carrots, cucumbers, cabbage, potatoes);
- seasonal fruits, berries (watermelon, melon, apricots, strawberries, peaches, cherries, blackberries, green apples);
- pasta;
- nuts (hazel, walnuts, cedar);
- herbal teas and decoctions (Dubrovnik, basil, catnip);
- fermented dairy products, cottage cheese;
- freshly squeezed juices, fruit drinks, compotes;
- boiled tomatoes;
- spices (turmeric, fennel, basil);
- vegetable oil (olive, rapeseed).
Nutritional treatment for arthritis helps the patient to quickly get rid of unpleasant and painful symptoms at home.
In limited quantities, natural honey is useful for arthritis. This product is suitable as a sugar substitute.
Honey has many beneficial properties:
- immunostimulatory;
- antioxidant;
- improvement of metabolic processes
- bactericidal.
During the acute period, you should not abuse this beekeeping product. Patients with this disease need to eat foods rich in vitamins, trace elements, amino acids. A useful supplement is pharmaceutical fish oil for arthritis.
General food rules
Removing certain forbidden foods from your usual menu does not guarantee immediate relief. In addition, the list of products varies depending on the stage and severity of the disease course. So nutrition for arthritis during an exacerbation involves adherence to stricter restrictions than during remission.
There is a common set of rules for patients with this disorder whose adherence is important in diet therapy:
- Eat food in small portions several times a day at short intervals (5-6 times). Hunger causes an increase in acetone in the urine. And this can worsen the course of the disease.
- Chew food thoroughly, do not overeat.
- Limit the amount of table salt used to prepare dishes (up to 5 grams a day). Salt has the property of retaining fluid in the tissues, which in turn leads to the deposition of uric acid salts.
- Optimize body fluid balance. To do this, it is recommended to drink it at least 2 liters a day.
- Arrange regular days. Preferably vegetables, dairy products and fruits (with the exception of those prohibited for consumption).
- Stick to restrictions for a long time, as short-term use of a therapeutic diet is ineffective.
People suffering from severe metabolic disorders and with a history of diabetes and arthritis should rule out dishes that cause jumps in uric acid and insulin levels in the blood. Diet for arthritis and diabetes is designed to reduce these indicators to avoid the development of exacerbations and complications.
How to cook properly?
The limitation of the grocery list is not the only thing to be observed. It is important to choose the right cooking method when preparing your meals.
There are no special requirements for the preparation of products with the exception of meat processing.
Cooking is allowed in the following ways:
- for a couple;
- baking;
- extinguishing
- boiling
- lethargy.
Cooking is contraindicated by:
- frying
- smoking
- salting and pickling;
- fermentation.
Do not use stale, burnt foods. The temperature regime of the consumed food must be optimal for food and not exceed the temperature of 40 degrees Celsius. The food should not be hard and tough. If necessary, individual dishes can be chopped with a blender.
Effective diet: menu for every day
Medical nutrition in terms of the content of important components (balance between protein-carbohydrate-fat), calories, vitamins, microelements, amino acids must correspond to the physiological needs of patients.
Approximate diet for arthritis and uric acid:
1 day
First breakfast: boiled cod, mashed potatoes, black bread, salad with white cabbage, seasoned with sour cream, a cup of weak coffee with saccharin.
Second breakfast: cottage cheese casserole, boiled eggs, bran bread, tea drink.
For lunch: vegetarian soup with fried roots and potatoes, beef stew, buckwheat porridge, fresh cucumber, 1 apple.
Dinner: carrot chops, pasta, milk, biscuits.
At night: 200 ml of kefir.
Day 2
First breakfast: stewed white cabbage, 1 boiled egg, black bread, cappuccino.
Second breakfast: cappuccino, biscuit biscuits.
For lunch: lean borscht, bran bread, baked poultry fillet, boiled rice, fruit jelly.
For dinner: stewed potatoes with vegetables, vegetable stew, bran bread with butter, a glass of broth.
At night: 250 ml curd.
Day 3
First breakfast: vegetable salad (white cabbage, carrots, apple), weak coffee.
Second breakfast: cottage cheese with sour cream, rosehip broth.
For lunch: barley soup with sour cream, steamed cutlet, mashed potatoes, berry jelly, wholemeal bread.
For dinner: carrot chops with fruit, grits of groats, a glass of milk.
Before bedtime: steamed prunes.
Day 4
First breakfast: grated carrots with sour cream, wheat porridge, a glass of green tea.
Second breakfast: dried fruit chops, compote, biscuits.
For lunch: Milk noodles, boiled chicken with baked pumpkin and potatoes, fruit jelly, black bread.
For dinner: baked cheesecakes in the oven, carrot and apple chops, a glass of tea with lemon.
At night: 200 ml of warm milk.
Day 5
First breakfast: porridge cooked in buckwheat milk, green tea.
Second breakfast: a glass of fresh carrot.
For lunch: vegetable rice soup with sour cream, boiled beef pulp, beetroot caviar, basil infusion with honey, black bread.
For dinner: pumpkin stew with sour cream, a glass of weak tea, biscuits.
Before bedtime: rose hips infected with honey.
6 days
First breakfast: chicken protein omelette, stewed beets, white bread, a glass of weak coffee.
Second breakfast: zucchini stew, fruit and berry compote.
Lunch: vegetarian barley soup, boiled potatoes, boiled meatballs, jelly, black bread.
Dinner: rice boiled in milk, a weak tea drink.
Before going to bed: a glass of yogurt.
The normal nutrition plan is prepared by a doctor. Combination options for meals with diet are varied. Diet number 6 is common for arthritis. Its main principle is the exclusion of foods and dishes with a high purine component, the addition of alkaline drinks to the diet and gentle processing during cooking. An independently composed menu with a limitation on the amount and nature of the food can lead to a long course of the disease.