Rheumatism Diet

Rheumatism is a painful inflammation of the joints and muscles, sometimes accompanied by fever. It can make it difficult for sufferers to perform activities requiring fine motor skills, or even to bend the affected joints. What causes rheumatism is something of a mystery, with the strongest theory being that a type of germ causes the inflammation and pain by settling in the inflamed area and releasing toxins into the body. Included in recommended treatments are changes in diet designed to flush these toxins from the body.

Fruits

Eat fresh fruits, especially citrus fruits. Drink one or more of the following three times each day: orange juice, fresh lemonade and grapefruit juice. You may also eat the fruits if you prefer. Drink the juice or eat the fruits first thing to get the vitamins working in your system.
Peaches, pears, grapes and other juicy fruits are also good for relieving rheumatism. Eat one of these with each meal. You could cut one of them up with oatmeal in the morning and incorporate others into a salad for lunch. At dinner, fruit could act as a dessert. All of these fruits are alkaline, rather than acidic. Their alkaline nature will help wash acids and toxins from the body.

Grains and Vegetables

Add at least three servings a day each of whole grains and raw vegetables to your diet. Eating raw vegetables ensures that all of the beneficial nutrients remain in the vegetables. When cooked, some of the nutrients leach into the water or other liquid the veggies are in. Celery, rhubarb and raw potatoes are especially beneficial. Potato juice may be a good alternative to crunching on raw potatoes, especially for those with dental trouble.
Oatmeal, rolled oats, whole grain bread and pasta and whole wheat tortillas are also good for rheumatism. Oatmeal or whole grain toast with sugar-free jam or natural peanut butter are good breakfast options. Have a wheat tortilla wrap with lots of veggies for lunch and whole grain pasta with olive oil and lightly steamed veggies for dinner. Just like the fruits, both whole grains and raw veggies are alkaline.

Foods to Avoid

Avoid eating meat and fish, caffeinated beverages, sugar, white bread and pasta, alcohol and pickled or very salty foods. All of these foods are acidic and, while they wont cause your rheumatism to get worse, may inhibit the work of the healthy foods in the rheumatism diet. The fewer acidic foods you eat, the more likely the alkaline foods will flush away the toxins causing rheumatoid pain rather than the acids in the foods youve just eaten.