Nuts - People Say They're Good, but I Disagree

[p-helix]

One thing I didn't mention is that they say that becoming too acidic results in inflammation. You can Google it.

I understood you to mean that, red. Definitely this is the case. Sugar, meat, dairy and bread are among the main causes of inflammatory effects in the body, which is linked with all sorts of health problems in the long term. But rather than avoid certain healthy or 'healthy-ish' foods which may or may not be labeled acidic, I think it's more important to look at the overall diet. There are so many foods which are alkaline which would offset the acidifying effects of the odd walnut, for example. But I'm sure you agree with this.

Rhythm Spring, I understand the causes of your problems are more complex than the acid-alkaline debate. Genes obviously play a large part and there's nothing you can do about that, which leaves you with diet and exercise. I don't know what is in the nuts you crave but calcium and magesium are obvious minerals you need and selenium I think plays an important role in general health. Separately, do you drink milk every day, and do you take ginger and turmeric?

 

[RhythmSpring]

I get lots of selenium and calcium from the fish I eat, but not so much magnesium.

I don't consume dairy, but I do consume fresh ginger and turmeric, both juiced in vegetable juices I make. Every dairy product I have tried, even down to local organic raw goat milk kefir makes me flare up. No dairy for me, thanks.

 

[Br1ngTh3Ra1n]

Eating nuts is healthy for the heart

 

[p-helix]

I get lots of selenium and calcium from the fish I eat, but not so much magnesium.

I don't consume dairy, but I do consume fresh ginger and turmeric, both juiced in vegetable juices I make. Every dairy product I have tried, even down to local organic raw goat milk kefir makes me flare up. No dairy for me, thanks.

Ginger and turmeric are two of the greatest medicines in my experience. Sorry to hear about the severity of your condition by the way... I hope you find new ways to mitigate its progression. I'm learning Tai Chi at the moment which is helping me with the arthritis in my knees, for example. All the best.

 

[What 23]

I'll come back with a better response but nuts have various compounds that you might be sensitive to. You don't have to have an allergy to them to suffer effects. Salicylates? Phenols? I know they have both, but there might be other things in them you're sensitive to.

When I eat nuts I have a hard time stopping. I used to eat almond butter... Tons of it. Like I'd buy a one pound jar of the stuff and eat it all day, almost non stop. Some days I hit 2 pounds of the stuff. Also at this time I became extremely tired. I had very little energy. I'd feel sluggish.

Now if I touch nuts I pass out. Not literally touch them but they zonk me out if I eat them. As well they, especially almonds (the only one so far), spark disturbing dreams.

Any number of things might be the cause. You could have an allergy. You might be 'sensitive', and unable to process some compound(s).

Its also always good to soak them over night and even let them sprout. Nuts have some pretty strong trypsin inhibitors in them which makes digestion really hard for even perfectly healthy people.

 

[What 23]

I did find that salicylates are associated with flare ups.

http://fedup.com.au/factsheets/symptom-factsheets/arthritis-joint-pain-and-diet

Diet for joint pain and arthritis

While doctors don't usually recommend diet for arthritis, we have received many reports from readers of all ages with various forms of arthritis who have improved on failsafe eating, see reader reports below. Salicylates are the food chemical most commonly implicated, but any of the usual culprits can be involved (about 50 additives, other natural chemicals called amines and glutamates, dairy foods and wheat or gluten).

We recommend a trial of the RPAH elimination diet - free of additives and low in salicylates, amines and natural flavour enhancers, with optional avoidance of dairy foods and wheat or gluten, depending on severity of symptoms - to pinpoint exactly which food chemicals trigger your arthritis.

Almonds are especially high.

 

[Foreigner]

Rheumatoid arthritis is auto-immune, so there's an internal dysmodulation of the immune system. Most people with auto-immune disorders also have hypersensitivity to certain foods, such as nuts. The antigens on the nuts trigger an overactive immune response which then causes pre-existing conditions to act out. Skin conditions like psoriasis and eczema work that way too. The nuts themselves are not attacking your joints, it's still just your immune system, but an over-reaction anywhere leads to an over-reaction everywhere.

There's also the fact that unless you're buying nuts in a sealed, airtight container, then you're likely consuming nuts that have micro-fungi on them. Just like farmers in North America store apples from harvest so that they can be sold throughout the year, the nut farms in South and Central America do the same thing. The nuts are stored in giant bulk cargo containers or grain elevators which are then progressively packaged and sent off throughout the year to meet global demand.

The highest quality nuts are put into sealed containers shortly after harvesting and processing. All the others end up in bulk bins who knows where and they are not clean.

I can't eat peanuts unless they're in sealed containers, otherwise I get hives.

You should also consider taking immuno-modulants in the form of medicinal mushrooms. I hear turky tail is good for arthritis, but I don't have direct clinical experience.

 

[Shimmer.Fade]

Rheumatoid arthritis is auto-immune, so there's an internal dysmodulation of the immune system. Most people with auto-immune disorders also have hypersensitivity to certain foods, such as nuts. The antigens on the nuts trigger an overactive immune response which then causes pre-existing conditions to act out. Skin conditions like psoriasis and eczema work that way too. The nuts themselves are not attacking your joints, it's still just your immune system, but an over-reaction anywhere leads to an over-reaction everywhere.

Well put, not sure about the rest though

Also, if you are RF positive, and have not yet looked into it, I would suggest informing yourself about low dose methotrexate therapy for rheumatoid arthritis. I have met patients whose lives were changed by it.

 

[Shimmer.Fade]

Name any overwhelmingly good thing people put into their bodies, and I'll find you someone who should never do so. Do not eat things that consistently cause your RA to flare. Rheumatic joints in full flare are especially vulnerable to damage, so to avoid permanent disfigurement, chronic pain, and reduced range of motion, keeping the flares to a minimum any way you know how is top priority. It's a shame, because nuts and seeds are both tasty and nutritious, but it's not worth your long-term health.

Have you tried any anti-inflammatory drugs or biologics / monoclonal antibodies that have made a big difference in your symptoms? If so, have they expanded the range of foods you can eat without stiffening up?

Another great post. If you can treat your flare-ups properly you will be doing yourself a huge favor. If you don't know how, ask your doctor for a RA self help group or schooling (hopefully there is something in your area). There are (as you probably know) also great RA resources online.

 

[RhythmSpring]

I am by NO means at the beginning of the road here. I've already tried almost all the biologics, and methotrexate twice. The metho didn't do anything except make me feel bleh and the biologics only sort of worked. I have tried EVERYTHING short of helminthic therapy, installing a buzzer on my vagus nerve and going to John of God in Brazil. Otherwise, you name it, I've tried it.

Re the medicinal mushrooms: I take Reishi and Lion's Mane, and took Chaga for a while. They might help with other things but do nothing for the inflammation.

 

[Shimmer.Fade]

Have you looked into short term corticosteroids for when you have flare-ups? I assume you already tried NSAIDs without success. The side effects can be unpleasant, but depending on the severity of your flare ups may be justified every now and then. Another thing if you haven't tried it already is a warm bath with a bit of benzyl nicotinate mixed in (they usually make finished bath products with it), or if your symptomatic is highly localized there are also benzyl nicotinate creams. I wish you success, and don't give up on it.

I don't expect it to help all that much, but it has been shown that regularly eating quite a bit of capsaicin can decrease inflammation.

 

[RhythmSpring]

Yes, I have. Corticosteroids, long term or short term, is like making a deal with the devil. No matter how good you feel on it, you feel just as bad when it wears off. Injections into the joint are okay, but they also have done localized joint damage for me too.

Benzyl nicotinate? I'm not finding much about its medical use on the internet. Care to show?

Other than that, I've basically read the internet on things to do for RA.

 

[Shimmer.Fade]

It pretty much increases blood flow wherever it comes into contact with the skin, and leads to a slightly itchy, warming state that when used in combination of a warm/hot bath tends to loosen everything up. I haven't read any studies over its applications to RA, but it helps with muscle, joint, and back pain. It also keeps up its effects to a lesser degree over a few hours after use. I personally use a bath oil with .1% benzyl nicotinate, and then a few small cap fulls. I would start with one cap and move up as too much itchiness can be annoying. Don't drink it or get it in your eyes.

 

[RhythmSpring]

Sounds a bit like nicotinic acid, or niacin, which I have tried. Flush and no-flush. Same thing happens with the warming state.

 

[flyingsod]

<edited for attitude>


Concerning the Inflammation issue... Many nuts are way to high in Omega 6 fatty acids to be consumed by someone with inflammation issues. You might try specific experiments concentrating on the Omega 6 dose you get with a serving. Also note that peanuts are not nuts but legumes and as such are way to high in lectins to be considered by someone with inflammation issues.

Someone else mentioned soaking/sprouting. Very important if you are eating appreciable amounts of nuts. It's not really natural for us to eat large amount of nuts though. Firstly they'd have to be stored to eat them out of season which wasn't an option for us till agriculture started. Secondly handfulls of shelled nuts are just not in existence in nature. If you are going to eat nuts you should only get the shelled kind because that really really slows down the consumption giving time for their fat content to send satiation signals before you over eat. Also the shell is a protectant giving some resistance to fungi and the associated mycotoxins. The shell also offers some protection against the PUFAs getting oxidized. Im sure you (OP) know the relationship between oxidized fats and inflammation since you have this issue but it might be news to some.

About the cravings... sorry I have no specific information about that but it might help you to think about it this way. Our bodies are way more complex than can be described even if one of us had all the currently known scientific information in our head. We are made from whatever elements and minerals the earth has. We've identified some of these and experimented to find out thier major functions in our bodies. We haven't identified them all or mapped all the minute functions they may have. These lesser known or unknown TRACE elements, especially the metallic ones can be hard to get in our food. This is both because they are somewhat rare and because they tend to leach down out of the top soil where most of our food crops grow. Nuts and other tree fruit come from trees of course whose roots reach deep into the illuvial strata where they can utilize those trace elements. I'm thinking it's these trace elements your body is craving since you have tried unsuccessfully to supplement with the major macro nutrients provided by nuts. If you tolerate fruits well try fruits from large trees. Im sure theres other sources of trace elements but I cant think of any atm. Real sea salt, but I think you mentioned you already do that.

 

[RhythmSpring]

I tried soaking and sprouting my nuts. It somehow takes away the satiation of the nuts--makes them "greener," more carby and less fatty. It is slightly less inflammatory, although still inflammatory. It seems to me that the satiety is directly proportional to how much it inflames the joints. It's weird.

I hear you on the complexity of our bodies and the foods we eat. It's not as simple as supplementing with a mineral or 2 and I get that. I just want to figure it out. You might be onto something with the oxidized fats.

 

[Shimmer.Fade]

Sounds a bit like nicotinic acid, or niacin, which I have tried. Flush and no-flush. Same thing happens with the warming state.

It is pretty much the same thing, but has a slow resorption by the skin as opposed to almost no resorption of regular nicotinate (nicotinic acid). Proper dosage and external global coverage help. The point is to pretty much induce an external, global, and low level flush (increase of blood flow in the skin with low level, but large area release of histamines). It isn't the most friendly substance if mishandled, therefore it is important to follow the directions (low RR is bad, not for use when pregnant or nursing, keep away from mucous membranes, etc...).

I haven't been able to find definitive literature (haven't looked a lot) but it is related to the capsaicin trick (using a low-level inflammatory substance to keep inflammation factors from building up in the body combined with better tissue oxygenation through increase blood flow). I do remember reading literature suggesting this sort of general reaction can help with RA among other skeleto-muscular issues.

However, if a big gun like methotrexate didn't do much (maybe improperly dosed?), then I wouldn't expect such a reaction to be anything other than temporarily comforting.