Avoid Foods That Create Inflammation and End Joint Pain

If you have swollen, inflamed joints you may have realized certain foods create inflammation. If you avoid them, you may be able to reduce your pain without harsh medications.

Now, there can be a lot of reasons for aching joints.

In the case of osteoarthritis, the degeneration of cartilage at the joints is the main culprit. Bursitis is another condition that causes joint pain, in which the fluid-filled sacs (bursae) that cushion the bones at the joints become inflamed. There are also autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, that can cause pain, stiffness, and swelling in the joint areas.

In autoimmune disorders, the body's immune system fails to tell the difference between healthy tissues and harmful substances in the body. This results to a hypersensitivity reaction that destroys even healthy body tissues.

One of the body's first responses to irritations of this sort is inflammation. This accounts for the swelling, redness, and pain in the joints felt by persons who suffer from autoimmune diseases. However, research has recently shown that swelling can be aggravated by foods that create inflammation.

Foods high in linoleic acid, a kind of omega-6 essential fatty acid, are known to increase have inflammatory effects. Examples of these are corn, peanut, and soy.

On the other hand, foods that are rich in omega-3 such as tuna and other coldwater fish, have a soothing effect on joint pains. Roughly 100 years ago, most Westerners had a well-balanced diet rich in both omega-6 and omega-3 food sources. However, now nutritionists agree that omega-6-rich foods that cause inflammation far outweigh omega-3 foods in the high-carbohydrates and low-protein diet that most Americans eat today.

Here is a list of some of the foods that can create inflammation and joint pains:

• Dairy products such as cow's milk and cheese contain lactose, a substance that can cause allergic reactions, which may trigger swelling of the bone junctions in the body.

• Refined sugars like white sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, and confectioner's sugar are also best avoided if you suffer from joint pains. Opt for natural sweeteners like honey instead.

• Grains with gluten like wheat, oats and rye can quickly trigger an inflammatory reaction.

• Polyunsaturated oils like sunflower, corn, soy, safflower and peanut oils are high in linoleic acid, which can have an inflammatory effect on the body.

• Caffeine, which is present in coffee, soda, or tea, is known to increase inflammation in cases of people who suffer from joint pains.

• Red meat such as beef, lamb and pork too can increase aches and pains in your joints. If you eat more chicken and fish you may notice less pain.

There are surely many foods that can create inflammation and result to joint pains. However, this doesn't mean that you have to eliminate these foods entirely from your diet.

You can experiment by avoiding them all at once, then slowly reintroducing each one back into your diet, just to see which foods would really trigger the inflammation and joint pain reactions in your body. Or, you can cut back gradually. Doctors say adding omega-3 fish oil supplements to your diet can help balance your fatty acids and relieve inflammation too.-By Jennifer P. April

Leg Cramps - How to Prevent Them?

It is a fact that leg cramps can cause excruciating pain when they suddenly strike person mostly while exercising. Leg cramps can also occur at night, causing a disruption in sleep. Medical research has still not revealed why certain people alone are susceptible to leg cramps. But the general findings are that those suffering from diabetes and blood circulatory disorders are more prone to develop leg cramps. It is also believed that persons leading sedate lives free from all physical activities as well as those who over-indulge in rigorous physical work-outs like jogging can fall an easy prey to cramps.

If you are not already aware, please know that cramps suddenly occur when certain muscles contract suddenly. The saving grace is most leg cramps do not last beyond a minute or two. Quite often, some minor changes in your water consumption, loss of excess weight loss or readjustments of daily work-outs can reduce the frequency of leg cramp occurrences.

Some suggestions to avoid developing leg cramps are:

1. Avoid wearing footwear with high heels

2. Make sure you do not put on excess weight and if you are already obese, take some quick steps to shed the excess kilos.

3. Avoid frequent consumption of diuretics or other medications

4. Stretch your calf muscles a couple of times, particularly before retiring to bed at nights and after any rigorous physical work-outs.

5. Always sleep on your sides or on your stomach with your feet hanging out at the end of the bed.

6. Make it a habit to consume plenty of water both before and during any physical exercise.

7. Sometimes leg cramps can happen due to potassium deficiency in your system. If that be so, you should consume potassium-rich foods after checking with your physician.

8. Avoid intensive workouts that overly strain the calf muscles and reorient your regular exercises in consultation with an expert.

9. Do some calf muscle exercises like flexing your foot, pointing your toes towards your knees. If you find that inconvenient, you might as well hold your toes and pull them toward your knee and thereafter massage your calf gently.

10. Wear good quality, tested athletic shoes that give you the necessary support when you are running, walking, jogging or doing other exercises. Make sure that your shoes do not put excess strain on any part of your legs, back or feet.

Once you are attacked with leg cramps, application of ice packs or heat bags can be an effective way to relax the muscles. Traditionally, quinine is considered the most effective drug for relieving leg cramps, but it is said that most of the over-the-counter medicines for leg cramps have been banned as they cause serious and even fatal, side effects.

Some doctors suggest drinking a glass of tonic water may be useful and if you think it works, you might as well keep some tonic water handy.

It will be a good idea to take a warm shower just before retiring to bed at nights as it will surely help relax your muscles. If your cramps cause unbearable pain and occurs far too frequently, then it is advisable to consult your physician regarding muscle relaxing medications.

The secret to a healthy and fit body includes a healthy diet menu planner and weight loss meal plans that helps in keeping us in good shape. The biggest loser training program varies from individual to individual and helps in attaining the target.

The secret to a healthy and fit body includes healthy diet menu planner and slim fast diet foods that helps in keeping us in good shape.The biggest loser training program varies from individual to individual and helps in attaining their target.By Ashton Smith

Carpal Tunnel Symptoms

Do you wake up at night, with numbing fingers and hands? Do have pain shooting up the arms with a cramping sensation? If this is the case, you are exhibiting carpal tunnel symptoms.

Carpal tunnel symptoms appear differently in each person. Some might experience the pain at night sleeping while other experience pain when working with their hands. Not only people that work with computers or typing can acquire this condition but also, people that do a lot of dexterity work with their hands are at high risk for this condition.

The carpal tunnel itself is a small passageway from the arm to the bottom of the wrist. The nerve and tendons within the passage cause the hand to flex and bend. Nerves and tendons within the passage become compressed causing motor skills to weaken, and pain to the fingers and hand.

Carpal tunnel symptoms other than numbing finger and hands, could be cramping up the arm, pain in fingers or arm, a feeling of swollenness in the hand or fingers, a person's grip weakens, and sense of warm or coldness can go away.

Middle aged men are likely to get the condition, however women are 3 times more likely to develop this condition. Women going through menopause can have a high risk of getting carpal tunnel.

Heredity could be another cause of getting this type of condition. If close family member such as mom, dad, and grandparents had or have the condition, the chances are likely next generation will have the same condition.

Certain health conditions can cause carpal tunnel symptoms. Thyroid disorders, diabetes, obesity and some types of arthritis will increase risk for this condition. People who smoke will have a higher risk factor with this condition than people who do not smoke. People who smoke will take a longer time to heal than non-smokers would take to heal.

With this condition, a person can apply heat to the wrist to help with pain, cool packs for swelling. Keep the arm, hand, and wrist immobile. A wrist splint can help this condition. A person would be able to still use the arm and hand with some mobility of the wrist. The splint will help keep the wrist straight, also helping the passage to open.

A person that has carpal tunnel symptoms should first check with a doctor to make sure a person has this condition. Other diseases and conditions can cause a person to have these types of symptoms. Once a person checks with their doctor and is diagnosed with the condition, the doctor and person can talk over the different therapies to use.

Carpal tunnel is a condition a person can live with and continue working. In some cases, a person might have to seek other employment, as this is only in certain cases. Taking care of a person's hands and wrist is important. Always give your hands and wrist a break.

By Chadhols Kimball   

10 Home Remedies for Gout Pain

The best home remedies for gout are the old fashioned methods that grandparents used. To relieve gout pain and suffering, the "old timers" had to use products that were readily available at home. These products went out of vogue as medical scientist and researchers touted new remedies for this old problem.
Treating gout with old home remedies has come full circle. Now the old home remedies that grandma used are now gaining in popularity.

1) Apply Ice to the area. - To reduce pain, applying ice directly to the area was the first line of defense in most homes. Applying cold packs to the inflamed swollen joints for 10-15 minutes still works.
Applying ice will reduce the pain and the inflammation. This may feel uncomfortable for the first few minutes but be persistent.The pain of Gout is worse the feeling of cold on the skin.

2)Take ibuprofen to help ease the pain.

3)Exercise the joints. Put each of the joint through a full range of motion. Try doing this exercise 1-2 times per day.

4)Soak the feet in Epsom Salt if the pain is concentrated in the big toe. Epsom Salt is a staple in almost every grandma's house. Older people use Epsom Salt for everything from a laxative to a bath salt to sooth aching muscles. Epsom salts contains Magnesium. Raising your magnesium levels may improve your
heart and circulation and lower blood pressure. It will also help flush away the toxins and heavy metals from the body. Most importantly it helps to reduce stress. Soaking your feet in a warm tub of Epsom salts will give you almost immediate relief from gout pain. For a leisurely bathe: Add two cups of Epsom Salt to the warm water as the bathtub fills. Soak leisurely in the tub until the water starts losing heat. For an extra treat, add a few drops of scented essential oil.

5) Eat strawberries fresh strawberries also help neutralize uric acid, as do nuts, seeds, and grains, although to a lesser extent. The berries contain high concentrations of vitamin C as well as fruit acids and minerals, like potassium, magnesium zinc, manganese, calcium and iron.

6) Eat some cherries - Consume cherries and cherry juice often. Cherries are an old nutritional remedy known to help reduce uric-acid levels

7) Drink water in abundance 8-10 glasses per day will flush way toxins and dilute the uric acid levels.

8)Increase your consumption of foods such as citrus fruits, berries, tomatoes, green peppers, and leafy greens, which are high in natural vitamin C and the bioflavonoids that reduce inflammation.

9)Exercise regularly. Regular exercise can relieve or prevent joint pain. Exercise is needed to nourish the joint cartilage. regular exercise helps the body remove waste products. Exercise strengthens the muscles around the joint. Developing strong muscles will support the joint more effectively and reduce injuries. Stretching your muscles helps you maintain a range of motion

10) Apple Cider Vinegar is a wonderful old-timers home remedy, cures more ailments than any other folk remedy. Try 2 tbsp of organic apple cider vinegar mixed with 2 tablespoons of organic honey (2 times daily).
within a few hours the pain of gout will start to subside.

Tim Gorman