Do your joints hurt? Inflamed joints cause distress and restrict mobility severely. Do you wonder if food can help with the pain? This article explores the connection between the consumption of anti-inflammatory food items and the reduction in joint inflammation.
Foods for Joint Pain
Fruits, vegetables, healthy fats, protein, whole grains, and dairy products—all—contain anti-inflammatory properties. Research indicates that these categories of food reduce inflammation! Such research can be easily accessed on the official website of NIH or the National Institutes of Health.
Include the following edibles in your diet to fight inflammation:
Fruits and Vegetables: Strawberries, Raspberries, Cherries, Blueberries, Oranges, Grapefruits, Limes, Spinach, Lettuce, Kale, Cabbage and Broccoli;
Healthy Fats: Salmon, Sardines, Tuna, Olive Oil, Walnut Oil, Almonds, Avocado Oil, Walnuts, Pistachios and Avocados;
Protein: Oily Fish, Poultry, Nuts and Beans;
Whole Grains: Brown Rice, Wheat Flour, Quinoa, Oatmeal, and Bulgar; and,
Dairy Foods: Yogurt, Milk, Cheese, Buttermilk, etc.
For more, consult a nutritionist. Set up an anti-inflammatory diet that meets your needs best!
However, outcomes might vary from person to person. Sometimes, the consumption of such foods might not even offer any considerable relief at all. It is so because the relief from pain also mostly depends on the cause of inflammation and the extent of damage or degeneration inside the affected joint.
For joint inflammation, one must first consult a joint specialist or an orthopedist. Correcting the dietary choices might help reduce inflammation. However, it can never be a complete substitute for a medical consultation from a specialist.
A joint specialist (or orthopedist) will discover the root cause of long-lasting pain and offer the treatment most suited for permanent relief. To schedule an appointment with a joint doctor, visit the following link: orthopedic specialist in Delhi NCR.
Why Do Certain Food Items Reduce Inflammation?
Certain foods or edibles reduce inflammation. It is because they contain certain substances that have been researched to reduce inflammation. Such anti-inflammatory foods help relieve joint pain in the following two ways.
Direct Inhibition: Consider fruits and vegetables. They have anti-inflammatory substances that interact with the body and reduce inflammation. Thus, consuming fruits and vegetables can directly reduce inflammation.
Sequential Inhibition: Besides directly mitigating inflammation, anti-inflammatory foods are highly nutritious too. Eating them will help reduce obesity or maintain a healthy weight, which will prevent early Osteoarthritis (OA) or delay its aggravation after the occurrence.
If your food intake is highly inflammatory or you eat foods such as refined carbohydrates, red meat, french fries, sugary drinks, processed foods, processed meat, shortening, margarine and lard, it will contribute to obesity. Inflammatory foods are unhealthy. They increase weight and health issues, typically when coupled with a sedentary lifestyle.
Avoid such foods. And, resort to an anti-inflammatory diet. It will help keep weight under check. Weighing less alleviates unhealthy pressure on joints. Low pressure means low inflammation. However, it is only relevant for joints with arthritis, typically the knee and the hip.
Obesity is the biggest risk factor for the initiation of OA and its aggravation; for a detailed article, visit the following link: https://bit.ly/3YSpsg9.
What Causes Joint Pain?
A joint can become painful for more than one reason. It usually happens as a result of an injury, overuse or internal conditions. Consider some of the major causes of joint pain below.
Fractures and Dislocations: Accidents such as automobile collisions, falls, hits, etc., can lead to severe injuries to the joints such as fractures and dislocations. Such injuries will lead to chronic pain if not treated on time.
Overuse Syndrome: Exercising more than the recommended level or engaging a joint in a certain movement repetitively will cause overuse syndrome. Overusing joints without enough rest causes stress fractures in bones and micro-injuries in the soft-tissue structures. It also results in joint pain.
Ligament Tears: A ligament is a band of soft tissue that connects one bone to another. Ligament injuries can also be the cause of inflammation in a particular joint. A ligament injury is called a sprain. A sprain can be just a mere stretching, a partial tear or a complete or near-complete tear. Ligament injuries are common among athletes. Causes of sprains are often pivoting, cutting and sudden movements.
Rotator Cuff Injuries: This is a specific joint condition with respect to the shoulder joint. The rotator cuff is a group of muscles and tendons that cover and keep the shoulder joint in place. Such muscles can get injured due to an injury, prolonged overuse or internal condition.
Tendinopathy: Tendons are also found in joints. A tendon connects a muscle to a bone. It is a stabilising factor in a joint. Like a ligament, a tendon is also a band-like structure. Its injuries are called sprains. A tendon can get injured and cause joint inflammation. The pain due to a sprain often lasts longer when the tendon is partially or completely torn.
Osteoarthritis: Damage to articular cartilage is also a widespread cause of chronic and debilitating joint pain. It often affects weight-bearing joints like the hip and the knee. Osteoarthritis can occur as a result of an injury or years of wearing out due to normal functioning.
OA or osteoarthritis can be excruciating and debilitating. But, this condition has a permanent cure, that is, replacement surgery.
Rheumatoid Arthritis: It is an autoimmune disease that contributes to chronic joint inflammation. Most typically, rheumatoid arthritis causes bouts of joint stiffness, pain and mobility issues in the mornings.
Infections: Certain infections also cause joint pain, for example, septic arthritis and reactive arthritis.
Bursitis: It is the inflammation of a bursa. A bursa is a fluid-filled structure inside a joint. It offers extra cushioning and support to the various components of a joint. It also acts as a shock absorber. An injury, overuse or internal condition can cause the inflammation of the bursa or bursitis.
Tumours: A tumour is an abnormal growth inside the body. It can be benign or malignant. In other words, a tumour can cause cancer or not cause cancer. Yet, a considerably big tumour always causes inflammation.
Conclusion
Consider the anti-inflammatory diet mentioned in the article. It might help reduce your joint pain. However, bear in mind that only dietary changes cannot offer permanent relief from joint pain unless the root cause of pain is resolved.
Only an orthopedic doctor can make the best diagnosis and offer the treatment you need to get rid of joint pain forever. To book an appointment with a joint specialist, visit the following link: the best orthopedic doctor in West Delhi.
