While regular movement and exercise is essential for healthy joints, so is diet. Diet and joint health go hand in hand, and it can be imperative to those suffering from symptoms of arthritis, pain, swelling and stiffness in their joints.
To help you on your wellness journey, we've sourced six foods for healthy joints that also help with joint inflammation all detailed in this very pocket guide.
We'll be covering the beneficial health factors of:
Let's uncover those health benefits!
🧄 Garlic
Similarly to onions and leeks, garlic contains an anti-inflammatory compound called 'diallyl disulfide' (DADS) that aids in combating inflammation and even helps to prevent cartilage damage due to arthritis. The benefits of diallyl disulfide include anti-inflammatory and antioxidants. So looks like garlic is a winner of a food to help with inflammation and your health in general; sneak it into most meals to experience the benefits of this helpful food.
🥦 Broccoli
Dark leafy greens like broccoli, kale and spinach have been shown to protect joints from damage thanks to them containing antioxidants and a compound called 'sulforaphane' which both help with inflammation. This particular compound, sulforaphane, has been known to neutralise toxins as well as being antioxidants that cancel out free radicals in the body. Aside from joint health, it is also suggested that sulforaphane may even protect your DNA - who knew!
🫐 Berries
Eating a rainbow of fresh, dried and/or frozen fruit and veg will mean your diet is full of potent antioxidant vitamins that fight free radicals and reduce the damage caused by inflammation. Look out for richly coloured fruits such as blueberries, blackberries and pomegranates which are a natural source of essential vitamins and minerals used to combat inflammation including your hip and knee joints!
Why not add some fruit like pomegranate to your salad for a sweet and vibrant addition to your healthy meal?
🥜 Nuts & Seeds
Surprisingly, nuts and seeds contain anti-inflammatory properties and even hold healthy fats essential to our daily diet for a variety of health advantages. Nuts and seeds are also full of omega-3 similarly to oily fish like salmon and mackerel. Omega-3 reduces inflammation and even helps to relieve stiffness.
The recommendation for incorporation omega-3 into your diet would be to have at least one portion of fish per week and use poaching or baking cooking methods to preserve those all important, beneficial oils.
🍒 Tart cherries or cherry juice
Did you know that the crimson colour in cherries is from a natural plant chemical called 'anthocyanin'? Some studies show that fresh and tart cherry juice may help to reduce inflammation as well as garlic, leafy greens, berries, nuts and seeds! Anthocyanin holds anti-diabetic, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-obesity and more benefits, extracted from edible plants and plant-based foods like cherries.
Grab a box of crimson coloured cherries or cherry juice on your next shop to snack on a few each day and reap the benefits of this vibrant fruit.
Being healthy doesn't have to be boring or tasteless, and these are just some of many 'fruitful' foods that not only taste amazing and are diverse in how you can incorporate them into meals, but also contain some essential health benefits. These benefits could be the difference between experiencing ongoing, chronic pain early on and healthy joints for longer.
We hope you have enjoyed this post and that it has inspired you to think 'anti-inflammatory' as a focus for your diet and part of your healthy living routine.
If you are suffering from ongoing hip or knee pain, don't hesitate to contact to our friendly team to make an appointment or if you have any questions about hip or knee pain.