Back Pain Articles

A survey of chief executives has revealed that very few of them are prepared to pay to prevent people getting health problems from computer use. Quite surprising when you consider that MSDs (musculo-skeletal disorders) account for more than half the people off sick today in the UK.

The perspective of the CEO was that the cost of the injuries over a year was considerably less than the cost of providing a better working environment. Apart from a lack of concern for the people who were working for him you have to wonder if the sums really add up.

Much research has been done to demonstrate the size and seriousness of the issue. The Chartered Institute of Personnel Development, the Chartered Society of Physiotherapists, and the Health & Safety Executive, have all published detailed accounts on the subject. Mostly the concerns are about Musculo Skeletal Disorders or MSDs or back pain to you and me, Repetitive Strain Injury RSI, whiplash, and a wide range of other conditions including, De Quervain’s syndrome, golfers elbow, carpal tunnel syndrome, tendinitis, tennis elbow, tenosynovitis, etc.

“You don’t need to live with this waste of time, money, and people” says Paul Goddard, RSI expert and education officer at Keytools. “For example, you wear a seatbelt to prevent a possible injury, it won’t help after the event!” There are plenty of other strategies that companies put in place as preventative measures.

Your organisation very likely has a healthcare programme, safety training, fire extinguishers, and security systems all of which are there for “in case” something bad happens.” So why don’t employers do a bit more to make workstations easier to use and less damaging for employees?

It seems that many organisations have totalled the costs and simply got the sums wrong. If you add up the wages, the extra work for colleagues and the lost opportunity it is not surprising that the bill for doing nothing finishes up a lot more than the prevention. For organisations like HP, E-Bay, and Visa, that have adopted a more proactive stance the reality is that bottom line savings and productivity improvements have been well worthwhile having effectively halved their costs of employee absence.

In some case studies, organisations that have planned programme of office ergonomics and using of right equipments can feel within 2 years of return of investment. CEOs now can be proud and say that “I have no worries to fix because I paid to prevent!

Paul Goddard is the UK’s foremost expert on assistive technology for people with RSI and his company, Keytools provides a large range of ergonomic keyboards and mice to assist with the prevention of RSI.

Siberian chaga mushroom appears as a black mass on birch trees, dead or alive. Occasionally, it may also be seen growing on hornbeam, ash, elm or beech.

In Europe and Asia, chaga has been used for centuries to treat cancers of the heart and liver, digestive ailments, and tuberculosis. [121]

Traditionally, the black “skin” of the mushroom was removed and the light inside boiled into tea. As a naturally compact remedy, it was conveniently portable to ancient healers.

Today’s scientific focus on chaga extract is primarily as an anti-tumor remedy. In fact, it was approved in Russia as a cancer drug already in 1955, successfully used to treat cancers of the stomach, lungs, breasts and cervix. [122]

A modern study conducted in 1998 showed that chaga extract does indeed inhibit the growth of cervical cancer cells under laboratory conditions. [123] Another study from the mid-90’s found the active compound betulin to cause growth inhibition and death of melanoma cells, also in lab. [124, 25]

Additional research has shown cancer cell division to be decreased by some of the active compounds of the chaga mushroom. [125, 126]

The black color of chaga is caused by betulin, a medicinally active compound that makes up 30% of the skin. [127] The lighter inside of the mushroom is rich in fungal lanostanes. So chaga tea may be more effective if made with the whole mushroom, including the skin.

The best chaga extracts are made not only from the whole mushroom fruit body but also the mycelia (”roots”), which contain more medically active protein compounds than the fruit bodies.

Other researchers have found chaga extract to be potently anti-viral. Two studies in 1996 found it to have an inhibitory effect on both influenza [127] and HIV. [128] Perhaps it does so by helping to stimulate the body’s natural immune functions, something that was first confirmed in 2002 and then again in 2005, [25, 129] and which may also help explain the historical use of chaga mushroom as an anti-inflammatory. [130]

Furthermore, alcohol extract of chaga mushroom has been found to lower blood sugar levels. [131] Chaga also demonstrates significant antioxidant properties that help protect the genetic integrity of the cells. [132, 133]

As an amusing aside not related to human health, Siberian chaga may even be used as a tree medicine. Paul Stamets relates a story of a Quebec arborist using a chaga poultice to heal chestnut blight. Not only does it cure the tree, but the tree even becomes resistant to further infections of blight after having been treated. [134]

Note: The statements on this page have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This article is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Never use any medicinal mushroom or herb without prior approval by medical doctor.

Credits: Thank you, Paul Stamets, for research references.

Dr. Rafael has worked with natural health since finishing Chiropractic College in 1996. He currently focuses on medicinal fungi in cooperation with Cordyceps Reishi Extracts, LLC, a U.S. business offering Siberian Chaga Mushroom Extract and much more. For the research references to this article, go to the Chaga Extract page and click on any number indicating a reference.

Rotator Cuff Injury Therapy can be done in the comfort of your own home, but I am sure that you have a lot of questions about your shoulder injury. One of the most important things that you can do is talk to your doctor and find a good physical therapist. Physical therapists and athletic trainers have the training and experience with shoulder pain and rotator cuff issues to help ease your pain.

Seeing a physical therapist for many types of injuries is very important, but it can be quite costly if it is not covered by your insurance. Health Insurance, now that’s a hot topic these days. So, rotator cuff injury therapy can be administered effectively by you. Yep, at home and you won’t have to buy expensive equipment or pay for costly visits to your physical therapist.

Learning where your shoulder pain is coming from is probably the most important you can do to understand rotator cuff injury therapy. Most all of the pain and suffering that you are experiencing is coming from the inflammation and swelling of tissues in your shoulder and upper arm.

This may be difficult to grasp at first, but there is a very important point to learn about what to do with this pain and inflammation. Don’t use heat or heating pads to treat your discomfort. I know that you can feel immediate results from heat treatment, but heat can increase the inflammation and potentially increase your pain.

Beginning rotator cuff injury therapy at home is very simple. All you need is a little time and a little ice. Go to your kitchen cabinet and get a zip top bag and fill it with ice. Place the bag in a t-shirt or thin towel and place it in your shoulder. This is a very simple and easy thing to, but this therapy can go a long way.

For the best results, do this rotator cuff injury therapy immediately after you have pain or shortly after your workout routine.

Visit Rotator Cuff Injury Therapy and find out how to ease your shoulder pain and discomfort. Rotator Cuff Injury Treatment can ease the pain and discomfort that you experience from a rotator cuff injury.

What is Sciatica? Sciatica is a constant pain that is felt along the sciatic nerve; it runs from the lower back down to the feet. It controls the muscles to the legs and provides feeling to the thighs, legs and bottoms of the feet. Sciatica occurs most often in people between the ages thirty through fifty. It usually is caused by repetitive use type of conditions, such as sitting for long periods of time, or normal wear and tear. It is rarely caused by an acute or traumatic event.

The pain from sciatica can be sometimes debilitating and it can get so bad it can be difficult for one to sit, walk or even sleep. Some people experience tingling, while for others it is just a dull pain. Occasionally it can be a burning type of feeling. Pain from the sciatic nerve is usually caused by the nerve being pinched or irritated in the lower back or lumbar spine. The nerve then gets inflamed and causes a variation of symptoms that can wreak havoc with one’s lifestyle.

The most conservative type of treatment for sciatica is the application of ice. I recommend to my patients to lay flat with two pillows under the knees and apply ice to the lower back on the side of involvement for fifteen minutes. This can be repeated up to every hour if necessary. It is important not to apply the ice for more than twenty minutes at a time because this can aggravate the condition. Applying ice to the source of the problem will decrease the inflammation of the nerve and subsequently decrease pain. Although this may be a temporary solution, it does offer some relief.

Manipulation of the spine to relieve the pressure on the nerve has been demonstrated in studies to be one of the most affective treatments for sciatic pain. Manipulation is the best place to start when someone has sciatic nerve pain. It is a non-invasive, drug-free treatment option. The goal of manipulation is to realign the spinal bones taking the pressure off the nerve. When the nerve pressure is alleviated one often finds great improvement with decreased pain and inflammation.

Other very effective, conservative option is a good exercise program. There are many exercises available, but these are the ones I have used in my clinical experience to be most effective. The first exercise is laying flat on your back with your knees bent. Squeeze or flex you buttocks pressing toward the ceiling. Hold this position for a count of ten and slowly return to the neutral position. Repeat this four times. Starting at the neutral position, bring each leg to your chest with both hands one at a time. Follow this by bringing both knees to the chest, bringing your head up again holding for a count of ten and returning slowly to the neutral position and do this four times. A third exercise is laying on your stomach and arching backwards with your elbows on the floor moving from a neutral position to a comfortable flexed position arching backwards as much as you can but stopping if back or leg pain worsens. The fourth exercise is on your hands and knees, pushing your back up toward the ceiling then pushing it to the floor, (this is often called the cat stretch). These exercises should be initiated slowly and if there is any pain or discomfort, to stop before you have pain. I would recommend doing these exercises two to three times a day.

There are many nutritional aspects to sciatic nerve pain you may not be aware. A diet that is pro-inflammatory i.e., one that is rich in meat, dairy and shellfish, will give more inflammation to all nerves. An anti-inflammatory diet consists of fruits, vegetables and fish. This is one of the most powerful ways to treat the symptoms of inflammation and stop pain.

The nutritional protocol that I found to be most effective in treating sciatic nerve pain are turmeric, tulsi and rosemary. These powerful herbs have been studied and found to greatly lower inflammation. Boswellia is an herb that is a specific anti-inflammatory. This is especially helpful for arthritic patients. Bromelein is a plant enzyme found in pineapples and has powerful natural anti-inflammatory effects. I prefer to take this with papain as well, it is essential that you take it on an empty stomach to really get the benefits of the anti-inflammatory nature. Ginger is a wonderful herb that offers pain relief. You can steep fresh ginger in boiling water and use it as a tea or make a juice with it. Evening primrose oil, black currant oil, or borage oils contain the essential fatty acids Gammalinolenic acid. These omegas will powerfully reduce the inflammatory process and take down the inflammation on the sciatic nerve.

There are many ergonomically beneficial positions that will improve sciatic nerve pain no matter the cause. It is an important part of your treatment to improve your posture and use your body correctly. Good posture allows the use of the body without strain on muscles, joints, ligaments, and internal organs. Good posture must be considered in all activities: sitting, standing, resting, working, playing and exercising. It is simply not a matter of “standing tall”.

In the resting position, it is beneficial to lay flat on your back with two pillows under your knees or lay on your side with a pillow in between your knees. Avoid positions like sleeping flat with no pillow, on your stomach or lying on your stomach with one knee bent up. This will result in a ’swayback’ condition. Some simple things, such as getting up and down from bed, to get into bed it is best that you sit on the side of the bed bring both arms to one side, lower your side to the bed keeping your knees bent at forty five degrees, then pull your feet into bed. Remain on one side or roll on the back. Getting up from the bed it is best to roll on your side push with the hands to the sitting position keeping knees bent and swinging legs over the edge of the bed. When sitting, stay away from a chair that is too high, as this will increase swayback. When sitting, the knees should be higher than the hips as this will flatten the lumbar curvature. Avoid slouching on a chair with feet on an ottoman because this can strain the lower back. When traveling in a car the seat should be close to the steering wheel and use a small pillow for proper lumbar support. When standing, it is recommended to place one foot on a stool or shelf and after a short time switch to the other foot, this will cause the lumbar curve to flatten and ease the pressure off the lumbar spine. When lifting, do not bend at the waist. Bend the knees and carry the object close to the body. When bending, bend at the knees and push your buttocks out rather then flexing at the waist.

My final tip on stopping sciatic nerve pain is to drink plenty of water. A dehydrated body is one that will struggle to heal. It is important to drink at least six to eight glasses of water per day to keep the body well hydrated and to flush toxins built up from resulting muscle spasms of the pain and inflammation. Water will also hydrate the disc. Between your spinal bones are intervetebral discs that dry out as we age the more we can keep them hydrated, the less degenerative arthritis will occur in the spine. This is also the reason we get shorter as we age is each little disc between the vertebrae dry out, or desiccate then subsequent height loss will occur.

If you follow these simple steps for stopping sciatic nerve pain, you will go a long way in preventing any pain in the future and avoid any harmful pharmaceutical side effects or painful surgical intervention. Remember, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

discover the waysto stopping sciatic nerve pain. Through years of clinical treatments, Dr. Gendron has helped thousands of patients prevent and relief the pain of sciatica. Go to his blog, www.doctorgendron.com today, to discover natural solutions and stop the pain.

A patient who has osteoarthritis has to coordinate with his doctor in order to find the best osteoarthritis treatment to suit him. His needs should be taken into consideration when treatments are being explored. If you have osteoarthritis, there are things that you can do to help fight it.

The bad thing about osteoarthritis is that it takes a long time to discover. People can live for so long unaware that they already have symptoms of the disease. But once they feel pain or suffer from swollen joints, they will soon realize that they have osteoarthritis.

Osteoarthritis is also known as degenerative joint disease. It is a disease that is characterized by deterioration of the joints. It can affect the hips, hands, knees, and even spine of patients. It is mostly diagnosed on elderly people, especially those over 60.

Unfortunately, there is no cure for osteoarthritis. There is no drug that can stop your joints from deteriorating either. If you are diagnosed with osteoarthritis, your doctor will simply give you medicines that can help you deal with the pain. These are nothing but maintenance, pain-alleviating drugs.

These drugs are readily available to help ease osteoarthritis pain. But doing it the natural way is so much better. Natural treatments are safer but just as effective in relieving joint pains. If you have osteoarthritis, you can take supplements that do this. Examples are Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulfate supplements. These supplements are designed to ease pain and promote cartilage growth.

Another effective natural treatment is silicon. Silicon helps make your bones strong. They also heal cartilage and protect your joint from wear and tear. They can be found in wholegrain cereals, root vegetables, barley, and oats. You can also use gels, creams, and other ointments that can help relieve osteoarthritis pain.

Prevention of osteoarthritis is possible. If you maintain a healthy lifestyle, you will prevent the wear and tear of your joints. This is especially important if osteoarthritis is something that is found in your genes, and also since you are likely to contract the disease when you get older. Athletes and those who are heavily into sports also have high risks of getting the disease. This is because the movements involved in some sports contain repetition. These repetitive movements can cause eventual decline and deterioration of the joints and bones.

If you feel any pain in your joints, visit your doctor right away. There are many kinds of arthritis and different methods are used to diagnose them. If you have knee osteoarthritis, your doctor will check your posture, gait, and both sides of your knees. He will also check your hip bones. Treatment and medication will also differ for every kind of arthritis. This is why it is not the best idea to play doctor and self-diagnose.

Over the passing years, osteoarthritis pain has become unbearable to many. It will eventually affect your movement, too. This is why surgery is often recommended to relieve the pain or get back mobility. More and more elderly people will be suffering from osteoarthritis in the future. Within a couple of decades, almost a quarter of the people over the age of 60 will have osteoarthritis. The bad thing about this is that there is still no effective and completely safe medication to fight it. For this reason, exploring natural treatment options is important.

If you want to get some more FREE information about the available osteoarthritis treatment options or learn about a liquid arthritis pain medication that will give you significant pain relief, then please click on any of the given links: osteoarthritis treatment osteoarthritis treatment that works

The market is now full of products to say they can relieve joint apin and arthritis and there is a new supplement drink called supple which claims that the drink if taken every day will help to relieve joint pain. The drink will show best results when taken with a balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle.

The promoters of supple drink claim it has powerful ingredients and that over 13 million people use their product. The plan consists of you having 1 bottle per day and they claim that you should feel significant results just after 7 days. They even give you a 30 day money back guarantee. One of the main advantages of a drink compared to tablets is that it is easier to absorb which leads to a greater beneficial effect.

The drink contains glucosamine and chondrotiin. Studies have shown that both of these supplements taken together have better results. The two substances are known to relieve joint pain and are taken by many people as supplements and in tablet form. Other substances in the drink are vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.

The results are varied. With most people the result take around 90 days to feel some difference and not the seven days that the website says. Results also depends on your lifsestyle and your excercises that you do. Your weight also has an effect and how much strain on the joints. The drink does however help in weight loss.

The website also claims that it helps in weight loss. Having heavy weight can give large strain on the joints. The drink provides you with the building blocks of cartilage which helps to rebuild and strengthen the joint. The ingredients found in supple facilitate joint repair and inhibit oxidative injury. The health drink only has 30 calories.

Overall the drink does work but there are cheaper options such as getting the same supplements over the counter.

You can find out more information on the Supple Drink and read reviews from real people at http://www.suppledrink.info Get a totally unique version of this article from our article submission service

Workout is an significant part of arthritis therapy to continue to keep joints healthy and mobile. If you think that only old persons are vulnerable to arthritis, you are mistaken. The disease is commonly characterized by joint discomfort, swellings, and inflammation. It can easily also be experienced by the young in varying degrees of pain. The main difference is, the elderly are impacted worse simply because of slow regenerative traits that come with aging. However, whatever age you’re, arthritis is often a debilitating disease that lessens your pleasure and also the quality of your life. Do not let joint pain stop you. You will find physical exercises that can alleviate arthritic discomfort and avoid forthcoming attacks.

Analysis shows that exercising is helpful to arthritic sufferers. Activity lessens stiffness and joint discomfort while effectively growing muscle strength, flexibility, endurance, and cardiac fitness. Fat around the joints add to arthritic soreness, and exercising also alleviates this since activity reduces fat in the body. Real, arthritis decreases mobility and limits the affected person’s activities. But exercising may be a perfect foil to compensate for little activity. In fact, work out is introduced as an aspect of intensive cure method for joint soreness. The other aspects from the therapy are relaxation, rest, diet, and medication. An essential portion of this cure that has good bearing on exercise is motion efficiency — the patients are instructed about energy and motion conservation.

Believe it or not, dance is really a part in the cure. Arthritis affects joint by creating them inflamed and stiff. Dance, with its variety of moves, heightens and maintains overall flexibility. Gymnastics, yoga, and pilates are also encouraged alternative work outs. Like dance, these also maintain flexibility with the added bonus of toning the body. Basically, physical exercises, which improve muscle coordination and flexibility, are portion of arthritic workout plan.

To lessen discomfort during arthritic attacks, powerful muscles are essential. They give cushion for the inflamed joint and relieve joint stress. Muscle creating and conditioning exercises, like pounds training or resistance training, raise muscle strength. Pilates is also a good substitute if resistance training is too hard on the affected person. The only difference between pilates and lifting weights is the type of weight lifted. The previous uses the physique as its weights while the former uses metal bars. In either case, the patient benefits from having strong muscles. Arthritis rarely develops in folks with strong muscles.

Resistence physical exercises like swimming, jogging, or cycling are also portion of the arthritis cure. These work outs lessen pressure on the joints by taking out the extra pounds. Weight control is essential to relieve stress and strain on the joints. Cardiovascular functions as well as the body’s total function are also advanced. Studies disclose that aerobic and endurance exercises lessen joint inflammation.

Arthritic men and women must ask their medical doctors about exercise alternatives. You might be shocked to know that doctors really suggest exercise in arthritis therapy. It’s critical to seek advice from your doctor first before taking any workout or sport. Workout is good, but if done improperly, you may end up with an even rather more serious arthritis attack.

Looking to find the best deal on wrap around knee brace, then visit www.yoursite.com to find the best advice on ankle support basketball for you. This and other unique content ‘relieve arthritis’ articles are available with free reprint rights.

I get a large number of people asking me which mouse will help relieve the pain of Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) when using a computer. If only it was that straightforward to get an instant cure.

Repetitive Strain Injury or RSI is a term that encompasses a wide variety of conditions but is not an actual diagnosis. Its like the expression “sports injury” it could be a twisted ankle or a bump on the head!

When you think about it most ailments will get the default advice of “take 2 paracetemol and stay in bed” regardless of what might be wrong. It seems to be a method for finding out if your own defence systems will deal with the problem if given a couple of days to get on with it and if you don’t get better presumably you will come back. It is not uncommon to hear some doctors recommending that the best way to cure Repetitive Strain Injury is to stop repeating the activity that is causing the strain, which results in the injury.

However for the majority of us, this would involve a complete change of career that doesn’t involve the use of a computer. As this is impractical for most people, you are left with two practical options; avoid getting the injury in the first place, or develop a method of managing it so can continue using computers.

Avoidance is a really good plan. Anyone who has suffered an RSI can tell you how miserable it can be and how shockingly serious its impact is on your working life.

The following steps are my suggestions for working on a computer without suffering.

1. Adjust your whole workstation to fit you not the other way around

2. If your equipment is not in the right place and not adjustable it is not ergonomic and you will suffer as a result

3. Start with your posture and invest in a good adjustable chair. It might seem expensive but is less costly than back treatment and much less painful

4. Adjust your desk to the most suitable height for your own comfort. This is not the same thing as what your chair will allow. You can do this by placing wooden blocks under the feet or cutting it down if its too high. Height adjustable desks are probably an easier option.

5. Get a Goldtouch fully adjustable keyboard. Nothing else comes close.

6. Get several different mice and pointing devices in addition to the one you have. Alternate between them in order to minimise the repetition. A trackball may feel awkward to use at first but you will get used to it. Vertical mice reduce twisting or pronation in the wrist

7. Get a document holder that can sit over and behind your keyboard. There are lots to choose from, the Microdesk will fit over the Goldtouch and gives lots of space for papers. The key feature is that you want to keep all your work in a straight line head up position

8. Get your monitor at the right height and distance. Monitor arms are really good for this, easy to use with flat screens and free up space on your desk. If you must use a laptop screen then make sure you have a stand to get it the right height and always use an external keyboard and mouse

9. Use RSI Guard – ALWAYS. You are part of the problem because you think it won’t happen to you or you simply can’t be bothered. RSI Guard is simple software that can really help you be more aware of how your behaviour is hurting you.

10. Make changes now. Your body can handle a lot of abuse, but when it gives up – you are in big trouble, and the road back is painful and slow. Some people never recover.

Paul Goddard is an Education Officer at Keytools and a well known Repetitive Strain Injury expert. He claims that RSI problems are easily preventable and his company, Keytools provides assistive technology for people with Repetitive Strain Injury including the RSIGuide software for prevention of Repetitive Strain Injury

Reactive arthritis is an autoimmune disease that shows up as a result of an infection in another area of the anatomy. Because its appearance is set off by a different infection, it is called “reactive”. Most frequently, reactive arthritis takes place because of of the existence of some kind of illness including gastrointestinal, bacterial or genital infections. Even food poisoning has been seen to trigger reactive arthritis. It’s frequently difficult to figure out the real reason, because the original infection has typically been eliminated before the indications of reactive arthritis materialize.

Reactive arthritis is a condition that tends to attack people who are in their 20s and 30s. It appears that males are more affected by the disease as compared to females. As well, white males are more likely to acquire reactive arthritis than African-American males, and the explanation for this is that of dissimilar kinds of tissue. And finally, HIV-positive people have a better likelihood of being impacted by reactive arthritis.

This disease can affect the spine, urinary tract, colon, joints, eyes, heart and mouth. Many of the symptoms of this illness are similar to other types of arthritis, most notably psoriatic arthritis.

When a person develops reactive arthritis they will usually become aware of three conspicuous symptoms. Among these is inflammation in the major joints, causing stiffness and lack of mobility. The next is inflamed eyes, or conjunctivitis, related to soreness and reddening of the eyes as well as blurry eyesight. The third indication is called urethritis, which results in trouble urinating. The patient will experience a stinging feeling at the time of urination. Moreover, they also tend to urinate more often. Additional signs of the condition consist of the emergence of a rash on the soles of the feet. The symptoms will usually persist for about 3 to 4 weeks.

The treatment of reactive arthritis needs to be done quite carefully. Before proceeding with any kind of treatment, the physician will perform tests, both in the clinic along with in a lab. The doctor will take stool cultures and urine samples, and will test the blood of the patient. Doing an MRI is also advised.

Reactive arthritis treatment needs to aim at establishing and removing the condition in the regions that have been impacted. Most effective line of attack to cure the infections is via antibiotics. To take care of inflamed joints the doctor may advise utilizing steroids and pain relievers. When the problem is unusually severe, the use of an immunosuppressant is recommended.

Reactive arthritis symptoms are similar in many ways to those of other forms of arthritis. This disease affects your joints and organs, and can seriously impact your life. Fortunately, there is a way to minimize the pain and distress of this condition. Find out how at Arthritis Relief.

If you have rheumatoid arthritis, you need to know about the direct connection between the severity of your symptoms and the foods you eat. Find out how a rheumatoid arthritis diet can help you.

You might be taking prescription medications, but there is so much more you can do to help your body.

Learn What Triggers Your Symptoms

The first thing you should do is keep a record of any foods that appear to trigger your symptoms. These problem foods will differ from person to person, which is why a log or diary is useful to trace the ones that effect you. Once you have your log, you can then remove these foods from your diet, avoiding needless pain.

Next up: some foods that should be included in a healthy diet for rheumatoid arthritis.

Foods Good for Rheumatoid Arthritis

As with any condition, the ‘take in plenty of fluid’ rule applies. Remember to keep your liquid levels up, like water (best), soups, unsweetened juices and herbal or green teas. You could be dehydrated and not even know it, except that you feel out of sorts. Here’s a tip; if you are thirsty, you are already dehydrated. Get into the routine of drinking whether or not you’re thirsty.

Most fruit and vegetables are chock full of healthy anti oxidants which have a wonderful healing effect, but there are a few to be wary of. Just avoid the ones known to exacerbate arthritic symptoms, and focus on the better foods like apples and avocados. By the way, don’t peel your apples as the skin contains five times more anti oxidants than the rest. And of course, dark green leafy vegetables are better than paler vegetables.

What is in Your Kitchen?

You need to add to your rheumatoid arthritis diet foods which have an anti-inflammatory outcome. This will reduce swelling in your joints and decrease pain. Two of the most powerful anti-inflammatory foods are in all probability already in your kitchen cupboard. These two are:

Garlic: Increase your intake of this humble bulb, try to eat it raw whenever you can; as with most foods, cooking destroys some nutrients. It’s delicious in healthy dips and guacamole. If you truly detest the taste, take garlic supplements.

Ginger: Add fresh, ground or powdered ginger to your meals or infuse it in a liquid to make a delicious tea. It’s a little on the spicy side, and adds a warming effect to meals.

Foods to Avoid

There are foods that have been linked with flare-ups of arthritic symptoms; some of these are:

Fruit and Vegetables: You may wish to steer clear of citrus (lemons, oranges, grapefruits), as well as tomatoes. These foods are very acidic, which appears to cause more frequent flare-ups.

Meat: The meats to steer clear of are beef, pork, bacon and lamb. Essentially, stay away from meats containing saturated fats. If you cannot do without the occasional steak or chop, make sure to trim away any visible fat before consuming.

Something to keep in the back of your mind; different people have different reactions to foods. This is why your own list of foods to eliminate from your rheumatoid arthritis diet will be very useful.

FREE Information on How to Reduce Arthritis Pan Naturally

If you want to manage your pain, here’s more FREE information on arthritis and how you can feel better without drugs.