For individuals in the early stage of joint degeneration or showing early signs of pain and symptoms, making changes to your diet to reduce your need to visit an orthopedic surgeon is a great place to start when it comes to taking control of your own health. Not only will these changes reduce your pain and discomfort, but you will also see other benefits such as improved energy, better concentration, and better self confidence. Try these things to get you started:
Consume Anti-Inflammatory Food
There are many foods that offer natural anti-inflammatory properties to the body when consumed through the diet and that can alleviate the inflammation surrounding your joints and causing pain and discomfort. For arthritis sufferers, inflammation is often at the root of their problem and this impacts the joint function. Turmeric is a natural anti-inflammatory food, as are antioxidant rich foods such as pomegranate seeds, beets, and apricots. Packing your diet with lots of fresh veggies and fruits is a great way to increase your anti-inflammatory load.
Add Bone Broth and Collagen
Bone broth is a nutrient powerhouse, and collagen helps maintain the health of the connective tissue around the joints and bones. Consuming these regularly in soups or on their own is a great way to not only aid in improving joint health, but also to offer you a healthy food alternative to some processed soup options, which have far less nutritional value.
Include Healthy Fats
Healthy fats such as monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat, as well as Omega 3 and Omega 6, are all important fats for the health of the brain, digestive tract lining, your skin, and in fighting inflammation. Adding a regular source of fat to your diet, such as Chia Seeds, nuts, flax seeds, olive oil, and salmon should become a regular occurrence as you seek to improve your overall health and help your joints become more functional. The body uses fat in many ways and being deficient can lead to problems such as increased swelling and pain.
Increase Leafy Greens
An antioxidant powerhouse and loaded with vitamins and minerals, if there is one vegetable to add in a megadose, it’s your leafy greens. Antioxidants have powerful effects in the body, working to remove waste products from natural bodily processes that can accumulate and contribute to inflammation. Furthermore, the minerals and vitamins are important as certain drugs taken for joint relief or other health issues can cause these to be depleted.
As you start to work with your specialist to improve the mobility of your joint and reduce your pain, don’t forget the ability of some simple dietary changes to help you out!
If you are having concerns about your joints, request a consultation with one of the orthopedic specialists at the Orthopedic & Sports Institute. Please call (920) 560-1000 or request an appointment online. OSI is Northeast Wisconsin’s provider of Mako Robotic-Arm Assisted Surgery for Hips & Knees.
OSI has convenient locations to serve you. In addition to the flagship facility in Appleton, you will find outreach clinics in New London, Ripon, Shawano, Waupaca, and the newest location serving the Green Bay area, inside the NOVO Health Clinic in De Pere.
The Appleton location also has a walk-in clinic that provides care for new orthopedic injuries.
OSI is a proud member of NOVO Health.