Would a change of diet help neg RA anyone out... - NRAS
Would a change of diet help neg RA anyone out there given all meds up, changed diet excerise has this worked? for anyone
Sorry to sound a bit confused Mac but why have you given up all meds and why are you considering getting on top of RA through diet and exercise alone if you are still smoking? I have found that regular exercise keeps the pain under control for me and I am gluten, most dairy, sugar and caffeine free which is fine for me and has helped get my weight down enormously. But I have to say that the RA has not gone away yet and I'm on MTX but even that hasn't controlled the disease activity fully yet it seems. TT
thanks for the information
D0 try and get your consulant to put you on Etanercept. You have to have tried two different drugs first, I was fortunate that my consultant was very keen for me to have it so pushed it through, I give myself a weekly sc injection.... easy. I am now out of bed and walk two miles a day at least. My life is transformed. I very rarely need to take pain killers
Hi .. I think the change of diet and exercise is good to control the symptoms of RA but to stop all meds I'm not sure about as the meds control the decease and if u stop the meds on long term and decide its not working then you can have damage to your bones that cannot be reversed. ... So I would think the wiseist way to do it would be gradually reduce your meds IF you are in control. And the decease is not progressing .... Debs x
I now pay a lot more attention to what I eat, and have a good healthy diet with lots of anti-inflammatory veg. And I do at least 30 mins exercise a day. Both have helped, partly as have lost weight (yipee, no longer obese!) and also being physically a bit fitter helps my joints. But I don't have any fantasies about curing my RA this way (I'm sero neg too). I really believe alternative stuff can help, but alongside conventional medicine not instead. This is a serious disease, so personally the idea that you can manage it by diet/supplements/weird bracelets is unbelievable. It's a personal choice, but everything I've read tells me that I need the drugs. A couple of people on this site got RA before the modern drugs were available, and the damage and pain they suffer is really awful so I feel really lucky that we do have a better chance even if it means taking strong drugs. Polly
thanks for the information a lot to take in
Hi Mac, there is no actual evidence that a particular diet helps the RA. It helps to eat a varied normal diet that is healthy and include exercise that you can tolerate, but in terms of medication you will be taking this for life I am afraid, RA doesnt go away, so it is a lot to come to terms with, but instead of thinking your life as you knew it is over, look ahead and change things to include a variation of what you did before. The right medication can take a while to kick in but eventually you will get the correct does and feel almost 'normal'.
Have you recently been diagnosed?
Pet xx
no i have had it for seven years now and have tried very type of drug i only take orally MTX 15MG and 200 Hydrox foilcd acid and all the pain relief going I use to have MTX it injected 15--20 MTX ended up with a empymea of the lung in hos for weeks due to the lowering of my immu levels through MTX injection took me six months to recover had six months off work i was very weak lung never recovered fully.
Wow, that is terrible! After 7 years you dont seem to have got very far with your treatment really. I am surprised you are on such a small dose of mtx. I can certainly see why you are looking for other methods to try and get relief.
Take care Mac, Pet xxx
I have read so much stuff about diet etc.
One thing that really does help me is epsom salt baths.
I get a 1kg bag..not for human consumption...from the health food shop and it costs £3.25.
I put a handful in the bath and soak in it.
Today I am going to try soaking just my feet and then my hands in it.
It has magnesium in it and I first started using it when I had my first flare up.....the virus that never went away!
I was having cramps at night and they have ceased.
My consultant told me not to bother with stressing myself with diets when I have enough stress going on.
She said the mediterranean diet can be helpful.
Then I read that the nightshade family i.e. potatoes, tomatoes, aubergine, peppers, tobacco can irritate inflamed joints.
I have also read about the wonders of cider vinegar, a dessert spoon in some warm water with a teaspoon of honey 3 times per day.
I started this for a few days and it's a hideous taste, then I was ill so I stopped again.
If you do try the cider vinegar, which is supposed to break down the uric acid crystals that can form around inflamed joints...something like that?
be mindful of the fact that it can damage your teeth, so you need to either brush your teeth or drink some water afterwards. I also worry about what it my do to my insides as it goes down.
Having said that, there is a lady who is in her early 70's who comes into where I work and she had her first flare up about 7 years ago.
She woke up in the morning and she was in a dreadful state.
She was in a wheelchair for months.
She wouldn't take meds for it and she swears that cider vinegar and a vegan diet cured her.
She hasn't had a flare up since.
Sounds simple, but she did actually only eat organic brown rice for 2 years, then she introduced aduki beans, then a bit of oil.
Drastic measures, and with this disease, the one thing I find hard to get my head around is that you never know if the treatment is working or if you are just in remission, so how can anyone say what works and what doesn't.
At the end of the day I think you need to do what you are comfortable with, there is enough stress in the disease already, without adding more.
I think that a healthy diet with proteins and complex carbs, a mid morning snack, and an afternoon snack to keep your blood sugar stable, preferably not sugary things, maybe oatcakes and a banana, or hummus and some raw carrots etc. can be helpful.
Sorry, got carried away a bit there :).
Nic
thankyou for your reply i have tried cider vinger with honey there was a double page spread in the sunday time people were recom it for RA instead of taking drugs it worked for them unfort not for me its about 6 pounds a bottle with honey and is plaseant to take its also supose tp aid with weight loss I took it for a month with no improvements
My DIET I only eat white meat chicken turkey fish I find I have flares if i try diest any kind of red meat and green ,red veg and potatoes I eat gluten free bread biscuits i donot drink milk or eat any kind of chesse eggs if i do I paid the price with a flare I have been investigated for Gluten its was found to also be neg like my ra I have this test done a few times over the last 2 years until it says negetive although i have kept a food diary and shown it my doctor I can not get a presciption for free gluten #
products
i have to pay full price as i do for my meds because i work
any way thanks for the advice i try the bath method
wheatfreebakerydirect.com
this site is where i buy my gluten free rolls they are fantastic and taste exactly the same as normal bread and if you buy in bulk you can freeze them and stick in microwave for 20 secs to defrost ...debs x
Sounds like you have tried lots to help.
The ridiculous thing about getting confirmed as gluten intolerant is that you have to eat the stuff to prove that it effects you.
No gluten in your diet will give you a negative test.
Who wants to go through weeks of suffering just to prove that it's a problem?
Take heart though, the prescription gluten free products are disgusting, the shop bought ones are so much better, so you'd probably hate them anyway.
You can get lots of books on gluten free cooking and baking which would be cheaper than buying the ready made stuff.
Lots of sites on the internet with good recipes for free too.
Nic
Hello Mac
I have sero-negative RA and was also part of the guideline development group that produced the NICE RA Guidelines. These are evidence based guidelines and I can tell you definitively that there is no special diet that has any impact on RA as applied to everyone. There is no doubt that some people have food sensitivities which can impact on their disease but this is an individual thing and cannot be generalised to be applicable to everyone with RA. The only diet which has some limited evidence of being helpful is a mediterranean diet which is high in polyunsaturated fats, fruit, fish and vegetables and low in red meat. The best thing you can do is to eat a good, balanced diet with plenty of fruit and vegetables, keep alcohol to modest levels within government guidelines, if you smoke STOP as this is definitely a no no in RA and we now know that smoking can trigger RA (see the NRAS website for Chris Deighton's article on smoking). Regular exercise is important and the only thing which will slow down your disease progression is taking your medication. Believe me, the side effects of not getting your disease under control are far greater and potentially worse long term than any side effects of medication which, with regular monitoring, will be picked up by your team and if there is a problem, a drug can be stopped or the dosage changed. Have your team talked to you about biologics? I have no idea if you meet the criteria for going onto biologics, but if your disease is not being adequately controlled, the best thing is to contact the nurse specialist and see if you can see your Doctor for a review.
You've had some good advice from others here so I hope this is helpful.
Best wishes
Ailsa (CEO, NRAS)
thank you for your advice
Thank you for the info Ailsa.
So, do you think that if there is no diet that can control RA, are there foods that can cause inflammation?
I'm asking this because I've just put dinner in the oven and I am using tomatoes and potatoes and I don't know whether I should eat them or not?
As tobacco is in the same plant category as them, should they be avoided?
Nic.
Loret wrote a good blog on anti-inflammatory foords, so if you search fro her bloags you'll find it. P
....and as I'm reading all these comments, I'm thinking I need to write an addendum to the first one.. Will try to work on that.
as Alisa pointed out, a diet high in vegs and fruits and moderate poultry and fish, is an excellent , ideal diet.
there are some foods considered to have anti-inflammatory properties, and are recommended as part of the diet. But not to the extent they would cure RA.
You really must, must get back to meds and stay with them, give them a chance to make a difference. Even with side-effects, which often lessen or go away after time. If not there are others, but they all can take a few months to achieve getting into the bone cells long enough to make a difference.
Don't cheat yourself! Take your meds, and follow a sensible diet to take the best care of yourself. All the best. Loretxx
No not at all. If you have no sensitivity to either tomatoes or potatoes, they should be eaten as part of a sensible, balanced diet. The harm comes from smoking cigarettes with all the added chemicals.
Enjoy your dinner!
Ailsa
Hi there, I'm surprised you haven't qualified for a biological drug yet? like Tocilizumab. If you don't eat dairy make sure you take calcium tablets from the drs, as it can repair fluffy density bone damage to joints in high doses.
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