Originally published September 4 2005
How to fight arthritis with fruits and vegetables
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Rheumatoid arthritis can be controlled by including fruits and vegetable on your menu on daily basis.
Brightly colored fruits and vegetables may help lower the risk of developing certain forms of arthritis by fighting inflammation.
Researchers found that a modest increase in antioxidants from brightly colored fruits and vegetables -- equivalent to a glass of orange juice a day -- was associated with a lower risk of inflammatory arthritis, such as rheumatoid arthritis.
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) affects about 1% of the U.S. population.
It is three times more common in women than in men.
It usually occurs in people 20 to 50 years old, but young children and the elderly can also develop rheumatoid arthritis.
It has long been known that oxidation plays a role in the joint damage seen in rheumatoid arthritis, write the researchers.
They add that antioxidants may suppress inflammation by getting rid of the free radicals.
The researchers, members of the Arthritis Research Campaign's Epidemiology Unit, in Manchester, England, worked with researchers from the Institute of Public Health at the University of Cambridge.
Twenty-five thousand participants aged 45 to 74 were asked to complete a questionnaire regarding their daily diet.
The researchers found an association with certain antioxidants called carotenoids (beta-cryptoxanthin and zeaxanthin) -- which are found in yellow/orange fruits and vegetables -- and a lower chance of developing inflammatory arthritis.
"We found that the average daily beta-cryptoxanthin intake of the 88 patients who developed inflammatory polyarthritis was 40% lower than those who hadn't, and their intake of another carotenoid, zeaxanthin, was 20% lower," researcher Dorothy Pattison, states in a news release.
Those in the top third for beta-cryptoxanthin intake were only half as likely to develop inflammatory arthritis as those in the lowest third, according to Pattison.
Vitamin C was also found to be an important factor, she says.
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