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Volume 34, Issue 4, December 2023



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Mediterr J Rheumatol 2020;31(3):319-24
Nutritional Pearls: Diet and Rheumatoid Arthritis
Authors Information

1. Department of Rheumatology, St. Paul’s Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece

2. Department of Physiology, Medical School, University of Athens, Greece

3. Department of Endocrinology, Asclepeion Hospital, Voula, Athens, Greece

Panagiotis Athanassiou, Ifigenia Kostoglou-Athanassiou 

Abstract

This article is part of the MJR Special Issue on Diet & Rheumatic Diseases, edited by Dimitrios P. Bogdanos, Lazaros I. Sakkas, and Yehuda Shoenfeld.

Various studies have investigated the effect of diet on rheumatoid arthritis (RA) as a complimentary treatment along with standard drug therapy. Various types of diet have been investigated. Fasting, the Mediterranean diet, the Cretan Mediterranean diet, vegetarian diet, an anti-inflammatory diet and the use of various specific food substances have been in the focus of research interest. The relationship of obesity with disease activity in RA has also been investigated. A period of fasting followed by Mediterranean diet, the Cretan Mediterranean diet and an anti-inflammatory diet have been found to have a beneficial effect on disease activity in RA. Obesity has been found to be associated with increased disease activity in RA. However, weight loss appears to be related to increased mortality in RA. The use of flavonoids, resveratrol and curcumin may have a beneficial effect in RA. It appears that diet may aid in RA management as a complimentary factor to standard drug treatment.


Article Submitted: 14 Jan 2020; Revised Form: 2 Mar 2020; Article Accepted: 14 Apr 2020; Available Online: 15 May 2020

https://doi.org/10.31138/mjr.31.3.319

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC-BY). 

 ©Athanassiou P, Athanassiou L, Kostoglou-Athanassiou I.