Posted on 03/17/2008 8:14:36 PM PDT by blam
Vegan diet 'help' for arthritis
Meat was off the menu for half of those in the study group
Rheumatoid arthritis patients may be able to reduce their high risk of heart attacks and strokes with a gluten-free, vegan diet, a study suggests. Heart attacks and strokes are among the leading causes of death for sufferers, as the inflammation caused by the disease impacts upon the arteries.
But an Arthritis Research and Therapy study found those who pursued a vegan regime had less "bad" cholesterol.
By clogging arteries, this is seen as a key risk factor for heart problems.Rheumatoid Arthritis affects around 350,000 people in the UK.
Millet and sesame
But researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm say this risk could be reduced through a diet which excludes animal products and gluten - found in wheat, oats, rye and barley.
A vegan diet may be helpful in reducing cholesterol, but it is difficult to get enough of some important nutrients on a vegan diet
They placed 38 volunteers on the diet, in which protein accounted for 10% of daily energy intake, carbohydrate 60% and fat for 30%.
It included nuts, sunflower seeds, fruit and vegetables, millet and corn. Sesame milk provided a daily source of calcium.
A further 28 volunteers followed a healthy diet with approximately the same proportions of protein, carbohydrate and fat.
Saturated fats were not to make up more than 10% of daily energy intake, and wholegrain products were to be chosen as often as possible.
Those on the vegan diet showed a decrease in the total level of cholesterol and specifically a reduction in the amount of low-density lipoprotein (LSL), also known as "bad cholesterol".
In contrast, those on the non-vegan diet showed no significant variations in these levels.
The researchers pointed to a "large body of evidence" suggesting that these changes were beneficial when it comes to preventing blockage of the arteries and cardiovascular disease.
The vegan volunteers also had a lower Body Mass Index (BMI) at the end of the 12 month period, while the control group remained the same.
The Arthritis Research Campaign, which is currently looking into how statins may reduce cardiovascular risks for sufferers, said the study was of interest but said the role of diet could be exaggerated.
"However we do know that, for example, eating oily fish can reduce inflammation, and risk factors for developing the condition include high consumption of red meat and low consumption of fruit and vegetables, so diet does play a role - however limited," a spokeswoman said.
But the charity also sounded a note of warning: "A vegan diet may be helpful in reducing cholesterol, but it is difficult to get enough of some important nutrients on a vegan diet."
Maybe it is the gluten rather than the meat causing the problems.
Unfortunately being on the vegan diet caused all participants to kill themselves because they couldn’t eat any enjoyable food.
That said, gluten is the biggest problem associated with arthritis, not meats. People have a lot more grain allergies than anything else. The allergic reaction insdie the body results in the immune system damaging internal tissues, scarring and when it happens in the joints, it’s arthritis.
A lot of people who have dairy problems are because they don’t have the right bacteria in their gi tract, not because they’re allergic to it. They just need to really supplement themselves with acidophilus, lactobacillus and bifidus on a regular basis to build up a decent colony of good bacteria to deal with these things better.
Vegan is an old Indian word that means “poor hunter”. /humor
I’d rather try lower taxes first.
I have several friends that are true vegans, and without an exception, they all suffer from bone, joint pain. Mayhap they would have suffered these same maladies consuming a normal diet, who would know?
They have no family history of such problems.
As a gluten intolerant person, I'm inclined to agree. I try very hard to stay away from gluten. When a little gluten "surprise" arrives in a restaurant dish, I know fairly quickly. I've had to stop patronizing a couple local restaurants that feature some pretty tasty Greek food. I'm happy to recommend them to people who don't have a gluten intolerance problem.
Rheumatoid arthritis is damned annoying. It has been creeping up on me for years. I enjoyed 6 months without pain when I was 40. My doctor prescribed "Beconase" nasal spray to deal with my sinuses. It had the accidental effect of eliminating all the swelling and pain in my knees, ankles and back. I had a great time on my inline skates. It was the only time in the last 40+ years that I haven't been hurting from top to bottom. I just choose to live with the pain as the drugs that most doctors would throw at the problem would seriously impact my ability to make a living.
LOL
I ain’t hankering to die but I think I’d prefer it to eating that vegan crap. Did y’all know they don’t eat pork ribs? I’m not necessarily suggesting a connection, but neither do Muslims.
We are learning so much, so fast, about immune diseases, that talking about using diet to correct them just wastes time, money and energy.
A whole series of inflammatory diseases are both related and have some truly complicated actions in the human body. Trying to treat them with diet is ludicrous.
Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF-1), is now being looked at as a central problem in many of these diseases, from Chron’s to arthritis, etc. TNF-1 inhibitors show impressive results and are moving to human trials.
In another direction, some of these diseases may be due to a *lack* of parasites in the human body. The diseases were developed over millennium to protect the body from parasites, but in the absence of parasites, they run wild and attack the body itself.
Sanitized pig whipworms are being used to treat Chron’s disease, and hookworm is being used treat severe asthma.
The article even omits an important detail about fish oil.
Only Omega-3 oil has an mild anti-inflammatory effect in some people. Omega-6 has just the opposite effect.
Inflammation is also closely related to stem cells. Under some circumstances, inflammation can cause stem cells to be created; in another, it moderates their production and specialization; in another circumstance it “prunes” stem cells so that they grow right where they are supposed to, like a regular cell; and finally, inflammation can wipe out every stem cell in an area.
It has long been known that some sulfa drugs improve arthritic conditions in some people. But they think the mechanism of this might be based on the effect of these drugs on the microorganisms of the gut.
This brings up the mention of gluten in the diet. In some people, gluten can have an irritant effect, which could start some part of the inflammatory response. But then again, so could any number of food allergies, from celery to milk and nuts.
If you really want to know more about the subject, talk to a rheumatologist. There is lots of information on the Internet as well.
Agricultural grains have been with us for about 10,000 years. That's not that long, 300 generations maybe? I don't know if people are supposed to run on grains. Maybe we "should" be eating meat, fish, incidental fruit, nuts and berries. That diet might get old real quick, though.
Right, as it contains a lot of VitaminD, which can shut down the immune system, pretty much the same as prednisone and the other corticosteroids, and with pretty much the same effect. You feel better, while the underlying problem just gets worse.
but look at the increase in peanut allergies over the last 10/20 years - there’s something going on, and we better figure it out soon.
I don’t understand the recent peanut allergies. But I think that peanuts are in the bean family- not really a nut, and for the most part an agricultural product.
Being on the Atkins diet does wonders for my arthritis pain. Some days I feel almost normal :)
Why is it okay to denigrate, slur, and malign vegans/vegetarians with impunity?
Why is it okay to denigrate, slur, and malign vegans/vegetarians with impunity?
Yeah but, what are ya gonna do?
My husband recently became a “vegan” and is the worst moods he has ever been in (he’s no day at the beach to begin with). My daughter followed suit and became a vegan and discovered she is allergic to soy.
ping
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