What are the dietary taboos for rheumatoid arthritis?

One type is food that will definitely cause joint pain and stiffness after you eat it. The other type is food that will definitely conflict with the treatment drugs you are taking.

Many people believe in the "Fa Wu" mentality and dare not touch a bite of seafood, beef or mutton. I met a 62-year-old female patient two months ago. She has been suffering from rheumatoid arthritis for 8 years. I heard from the patient that eating shrimp will cause illness. She has not dared to touch any aquatic products for 5 years. The last time she checked, her albumin was very low. She was so weak that she couldn't breathe even after taking two steps. I asked her to try two or three boiled shrimps at home. If she didn't feel any discomfort, I would slowly increase the amount. A few days ago, she came for a follow-up visit and said that she now eats shrimp three times a week without any pain. Her albumin level has gone up and she feels more energetic. In fact, the so-called "food-induced pain" is mostly caused by individual food allergies. Allergies will aggravate the systemic inflammatory response and affect the joints. If you don't have any reaction after eating it, you don't have to eat it blindly. Enough high-quality protein can help stabilize your immunity.

In addition to this individual difference, what everyone needs to pay more attention to is the dietary taboos related to medication. This is something that almost all patients taking medication must pay attention to. For example, if you are taking methotrexate, you should never drink alcohol. The drug itself needs to be metabolized by the liver. Alcohol will increase the burden on the liver. The risk of liver damage can increase several times when the two are combined. Don’t be greedy even with beer or fruit wine. ； If you are taking pain-relieving anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen and diclofenac, the drugs themselves will irritate the gastric mucosa. Do not eat spicy food, iced drinks, or hot food just out of the pan. Otherwise, the already fragile gastric mucosa will be easily scratched, and in severe cases, gastric bleeding will occur. ； If you take hormones for a long time to control your symptoms, don’t show off with milk tea and cakes every day, and don’t drink too strong tea and coffee. The hormones themselves will increase blood sugar and accelerate calcium loss. If you continue to eat high-sugar foods that promote calcium loss, your blood sugar will either skyrocket or you will develop osteoporosis early, which will lead to new problems.

As for the widely circulated statement on the Internet that "you should completely avoid foods high in sugar, oil, and purine", there is currently no unified academic conclusion. Some studies say that such foods will increase the level of inflammatory factors in the body, and some studies say that there is no clear correlation between the two. In fact, it can be adjusted flexibly. If you drink a glass If your joints are obviously sore and swollen the next day after milk tea, then avoid eating this kind of food. If you don’t have any reaction after eating it, it’s perfectly fine to eat an occasional meal to satisfy your cravings. You don’t need to restrict your diet too much. Being sick is enough to make you worry, and you can’t eat this or that. A bad mood will also affect your condition.

To put it bluntly, the dietary taboos for rheumatoid arthritis are never uniform. They are all determined according to your own body reaction and medication status. You don’t need to compare with others about the taboos. A diet plan that is comfortable to eat, nutritious, and stable is the one that is most suitable for you.