pmr

[43086]

Has anyone locked in on which foods surely cause less pain, and which ones cause more problems

[PMRpro Ambassador]

Some people have commented that when they eat too many sweet/carbohydrate foods they feel worse. I can't lose weight if I eat more than a very small amount of carbohydrate.

Lots of people have noted that adding anti-inflammatory foods to their diet makes a difference in that if they don't eat them for any reason they don't feel as good.

Everyone is different - I tried no nightshade vegetables and it didn't make any difference, others find that helps. I've tried no alcohol, no difference for me. I was eating gluten-free at the time my PMR started so that doesn't make any difference to me.

A study showed that a very strict vegan diet helped joint pain in half of rheumatoid arthritis patients, but it made no difference at all to the other half and the pain returned with the introduction of even small amounts of dairy. The diet was very strict and patients found it very difficult to keep up outside the study.

If you find something disagrees with you fair enough - but there are no real yes or no things with any founded backing at all. A couple of people insisted their PMR was better on some very exotic diet based on veggies and fruit - but the shopping activity required and the cost would make it prohibitive for most elderly people. And it made me tired just reading their description of how the preparation was done! My hand hurt to hold a knife and fork to eat never mind the peeling and chopping they suggested! And one claimed she spent hours a day doing this AND working.

[Celtic PMRGCAuk volunteer]

I researched anti-inflammatory foods shortly following diagnosis and although there is no diet that will cure us, I do believe that the right diet can help to lessen our discomfort.

Among the anti-inflammatory foods I ate consistently (and still do even though off steroids) are oily fish, including sardines (with bones - good for our bones, the density of which can be reduced by the steroids), mackerel, salmon, trout, beetroot, avocado, garlic and turmeric. I also included plenty of known diuretic foods to help with steroid-induced fluid retention, including asparagus, garlic, fennel, melon.

I avoided all processed meats and sugar, and reduced refined carbs which can increase steroid-induced weight gain, including white bread, white potatoes (the latter can be substituted with some sweet potatoes). These foods turn to sugar in our bodies and could add to the risk of steroid-induced diabetes.

Coffee, sugar and alcohol are known to stress the adrenal glands which are already being suppressed by the high dose steroids.

This is just a start, and although, as I said previously, they won't cure us, I certainly found that if, for instance, I missed my three portions of oily fish a week, I would become aware of increasing discomfort.

To end on a welcome note, if you are a chocolate lover then the good news is that a few squares of dark chocolate containing high cocoa solids (70%) is allowed - the flavonoids it contains are anti-inflammatory!

[piglette]

Sugary things definitely cause pain in my case. I do try and include anti inflammatory foods, vit D, calcium etc in my diet and have actually found it quite fun finding out about nutrition. I have tried some of the so called super foods, acai berries are disgusting in my opinion!

[Parijm]

I am keen also to establish which anti inflammatory foods might help and have read the replies here with interest. I try to include dairy, particularly some cheese or yoghurt, to assist with the potential of bone loss due to the steroids. When turmeric is mentioned, is this taken as a supplement?

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to Parijm]

I know some people have taken it as a supplement. If I remember rightly, Celtic uses it in cooking, adding to casseroles and so on.

[schmuppy in reply to PMRpro]

I take turmeric/curcumin supplements every day - it really does take the edge off if you're having a bad morning. don't like the taste of the tea.

[evafel]

I have stopped eating red and white meat and chicken, for a try because I red that meat can get inflammation more bad. I think it helped a bit.

[Mama48]

I now take turmeric as a supplement as I found my teeth got stained by the tea!

[Zoesquare1]

Taking prednisone causes salt retention and potassium loss, causing fluid retention and weak muscles. I've been doing a very strict sodium restriction diet (<1000 mg/ day) and I find I am naturally craving a lot of hi-potassium foods like bananas, strawberries, beans, dark leafy greens, potatoes, squash, yogurt, fish, avocados, mushrooms. I was amazed how my diet naturally gravitated this way after starting pred (but I don't eat dairy due to allergies).

Now I notice how salty foods or lack of potassium foods make me feel worse.

I limit simple carbs, but nothing so strict as Atkins or South Beach diets.

The salt restriction is hard, particularly if you like to eat out a lot or like quick processed foods. I've learned to cook 'fresh' for myself again.

[lizz33]

I've been gluten free now for years but also starch free and since that I am much better I am on steroid 5mg one a day , I avoid some gluten free food that has potato starch or any that contain any such like ,you can loose weight if you just give up potatoes rice bread and pasta If you do have potatoes you need to roast them in olive oil or chip them in olive oil as that absorbs the starch in them , may say that even my weight is down

[schmuppy]

Before I got the exact diagnosis of PMR, I did really well with Clint Paddison's diet - sort of. It was so depressing to me to subsist on brown rice and sweet potatoes that it drove me crazy. But even after a few months of that, and doing well with it, the disease caught up with me. And thank God it did, because only the response to the prednisone (and the negative test for RA antibodies) clued my wonderful doc into the PMR.

That said, there are foods I definitely avoid. First, dairy is the worst. If you need calcium, there are plenty of other ways to get much better-absorbed calcium, like salmon and spinach. Toss the dairy out completely - you are not a baby cow, you do not need milk!

Second, I avoid alcohol, caffeine, and refined sugar like the plague. For me, nightshade vegetables are iffy. As an Italian, it breaks my heart to avoid tomato sauce and eggplant, but I don't miss the white potatoes. The worst night I've had in a while was when I ate some pickled herring that was out of a jar and cured with a ton of sugar and vinegar - thought I was going to die and had to pile some Advil on top of my prednisone.

I don't eat gluten, either, as a hangover from the Clint Paddison days, but I'm afraid to add it back because I've lost over 100lbs since being diagnosed and I don't want to stress my body by gaining weight again. I'm only on 10mg of pred a day, so I don't have much in the way of side effects - if I gain weight, the pred will work less well, and I may be forced to add more.

Another horrible flare resulted after I ate some "gluten free" pasta that was made out of corn flour. Corn seems to be the bane of my existence. And I got very excited to buy a bag of sweet-potato crisps, only to find out that the canola oil they were fried in gave me one of my worst mornings ever!

My recent experiments with chicken and sushi have been successful - as long as the sushi isn't a spicy tuna roll - the mayo has eggs, and eggs are a problem for me. Next experiment is going to be a steak (no butter) so wish me luck! As I wish you luck too.

[Hidden in reply to schmuppy]

Hi schmuppy

This is an old thread. Perhaps you might want to share this in a new post.🌻