Question
Is there any specific diet that I should be following if I have rheumatoid arthritis?
Answer
There is no specificdiet that we recommend for our patients with RA. However, we always emphasize the importance of a well-balanced diet that includes vegetables, fruits, and protein (legumes, fish, poultry, etc). Because of the increased risk of cardiovascular disease in RA, we also recommend that patients pay close attention to traditional risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure. Both cholesterol and blood pressure can be affected by diet. Therefore, close attention should be paid to sodium (salt) intake and high fat, high cholesterol foods (fried, butter, etc) should be minimized.
