Arthrosis, arthritis and other “delights” of life – all this can be avoided if you slightly adjust your diet.
Statistics show that in Russia, among people aged 50+, almost 40% of men and 20% of women suffer from arthritis. Of course, it’s not just food that is to blame. Joint health is both genetics, and the degree of mobility, physical activity. But diet is the simplest thing to change. First of all, it is worth excluding the foods that are most harmful to the joints.
Phosphates are salts of phosphoric acids. They are useful and vital for the body, but, naturally, there is a measure for everything. In a large amount of phosphorus salts, the calcium balance is disturbed. To replenish it, the body begins to draw calcium from the bone tissue. As a result, teeth deteriorate, osteoporosis and osteoarthritis develop, and the density of cartilage tissue decreases.
A balanced and safe amount of phosphates – in various types of meat, fish, cereals and legumes, and in greens. But processed meat products can contain such an amount of phosphates that the daily allowance can be exceeded by literally eating 100 grams of the product.
Most of all phosphates are found in sausages, sausages of all kinds, bacon, crab sticks, processed cheese, carbonated drinks, chips, sauces, canned food, instant products.
A side effect of excess phosphate is a slowdown in metabolism, due to which a person quickly gains weight, apathy grows, and the cardiovascular system is disrupted.
Not a single doctor, being in his right mind, will recommend such products for a healthy diet. Pickled cucumbers and mushrooms, smoked fish, meat – they are harmful not only for digestion, but also for joints. First, because they contain all the same phosphates. Secondly, these foods contain a lot of salt. Excess salt begins to be deposited on the walls of blood vessels, on the joints. The latter lose flexibility, begin to swell, become less and less mobile. If we add to this the increase in weight, then under the increasing load, the joints collapse.
These products hold the record for purine content: it is a chemical element that is involved in the formation and structure of DNA and RNA molecules in the human body. Their lack can lead to serious deterioration in health, but an excess of them also adversely affects a person. With its excess, metabolic disorders occur, the level of uric acid in the body rises and its crystals are deposited on the cartilaginous and vascular membranes, in the tendons and internal organs. This can lead to gout.
In addition to tea and coffee, legumes, fatty fish, fatty meats, soda, snacks and fast food, fish caviar, offal, mushrooms, spicy and smoked, chocolate are rich in purine.
Sorrel and herbs with oxalic acid
What is bad about oxalic acid? Strictly speaking, it is useful: it contains a lot of iron, magnesium, vitamin B6. But only when eating fresh herbs. During heat treatment, oxalic acid reacts with calcium and forms an inorganic salt, which is not absorbed by our body and remains inside in the form of kidney stones, for example. The process of removing salts from the body as a whole is complicated, inflammation occurs – including in the joints.
The largest amount of oxalic acid is contained in rhubarb, beets, cocoa beans, wheat germ, parsley, sorrel, dill, spinach.
The sugar question is real pain. Firstly, sweets make you fat, and this causes an increased load on the joints. Secondly, sugar destroys collagen and disrupts its synthesis. Collagen is not only about youthful skin. It is also the basis of the body’s connective tissue, that is, tendons and cartilage. Well, if we are talking about pastries containing yeast, then purines – catalysts of gout – also add their effect to sugar.
Lamb, pork, lard, fatty fish, semi-finished products, fast food, sausages and sausages, butter, food fried in oil or deep-fried – all these products are most harmful to joints. The scheme is simple: These foods have a huge amount of calories, saturated animal fats, which increase body weight while providing minimal benefits. With increasing load, the joints are overstrained, the cartilage becomes thinner, the ligaments and tendons are deformed. In addition, an excess of protein and fat in the diet provokes autoimmune processes, as a result of which inflammation occurs, for example, of the joints.
“The health of ligaments and tendons, the integrity of the cartilage and joint capsules largely depends on what we eat. Collagen-rich foods such as jellied meat and jelly, as well as apples, seafood, flaxseed oil, dairy products are all just help.
It is possible to prevent the development of diseases of the musculoskeletal system, if you eat wisely, exclude bad habits from your lifestyle, go in for sports – daily gymnastics is enough. It is important to monitor hormonal levels. The hormone testosterone, for example, stimulates the renewal of bones, and if there is a lack of this hormone in the body, the bones become fragile, which, in turn, leads to degenerative processes in the cartilage tissue. “