For more youthful knee joints - or anything that bends - consider what’s in your kitchen. These six foods could be your best medicine: berries, ginger, avocado, flaxseeds, omega-3-rich fish, and soy.

Research shows they help stifle joint-damaging inflammation. Try this joint-friendly daily meal plan: whole-grain cereal or oatmeal with berries for breakfast, a turkey and avocado sandwich, or a soy burger for lunch, a handful of walnuts or flaxseeds for a snack, and salmon or tilapia for dinner. (Make salmon with fresh ginger for extra anti-inflammatory action.) 

Some other diet do’s - and don’ts.  Make a fruit bowl. Vitamin C can thwart cartilage loss and slow osteoarthritis progression. Sip tea. It’s full of anti-inflammatory compounds. Skip red meat, and leave out the sugary and starchy stuff. Pro-inflammatory substances in these foods - like saturated fats in red meat - could spur joint pain or make it worse. 

If joint pain still has you down, see your doctor, there are medicines that can help. For more information about joint pain or arthritis, come to the free public health lecture this Thursday evening, 6pm at Doctors Hospital, featuring Dr. Valentine Grimes.

 

“Health Tip of The Day brought to you by Doctors Hospital, keeping you and your family healthy for life.”