Juicing For Vitamins Can Help With Osteoarthritis

There are actually more than 100 types of arthritis! The most common form is osteoarthritis, also known as degenerative arthritis or degenerative joint disease. Osteoarthritis is caused by the wearing down of cartilage in our joints over time, causing the joints to become stiff and painful. Certain joints are more susceptible to developing this health condition, such as the knees, hips, hands, neck and the lower back. However, every joint can develop osteoarthritis symptoms. The cause of this degenerative joint disease is unclear, though definite risk factors include aging, joint damage/injury, obesity and heredity.

At present there is no known cure for osteoarthritis. However, there are treatments for osteoarthritis joint pain reduction, maintaining joint movement and slowing down the degeneration. These osteoarthritis treatments includes drugs (such as NSAID's and cortisone shots), alternative methods such as acupuncture and the arthritis diet. Here we will focus on some key vitamins which can obtain through juicing.

Vitamin D

A study has found that vitamin D is beneficial for those who suffer from osteoarthritis in the knees. The Framingham Osteoarthritis Cohort Study of 1996 suggests that elderly people with a low intake of vitamin D and low blood levels of vitamin D were 3 times as likely to see their osteoarthritis symptoms worsen. Vitamin D is not found in fruits and vegetables, so it is not something we can obtain from juicing. Great food sources includes, fish, eggs and vitamin D fortified orange juice.

Vitamin C

1) Pain Reduction - Several studies have suggested that vitamin C is beneficial as an osteoarthritis treatment for pain. A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, crossover trial was performed on 133 patients. Those that were given 1g of calcium ascorbate per day (containing 898mg vitamins C) had significantly more pain reduction than those given a placebo. Another study also showed that taking 200mg of vitamin C a day reduced the chance of developing osteoarthritis knee pain.

2) Degeneration reduction - Taking 120-200mg of vitamin C per day has been shown to decrease the progression of this disease threefold.

3) Connective tissue and cartilage - Vitamin C is necessary for the production of connective tissue and cartilage and is suggested that it may help with some joint repair.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant for mopping up free radicals that attack all the bodies cells, including the cells in joints. Vitamin E is also a good anti-inflammatory agent for Joint Pain. Many sufferers claim that vitamin E helps reduce their pain.

Juicer Recipes for Osteoarthritis Treatment

The following list of juices will all provide good amounts of vitamins C and E to help provide relief from pain and help slow down degeneration of the joints. Vitamin E is not really found in vegetables. On the other hand vitamins C and E are found in a number of fruit. The recipes below will all be fruit based.

Osteoarthritis Treatment Juicer Recipe #1 - Berry Bonanza
1 cup of blackberries
1 cup of blueberries

3 kiwis Wash blueberries and blackberries thoroughly. Peel the kiwis. Juice them and then give them a good stir and enjoy.

Osteoarthritis Treatment Juicer Recipe #2 - Apple Zing!
3 Apples
1/4 of a lemon

Pick 3 of your favorite tasting apples, peel and core them and remove the stem. Scoop out the flesh from a 1/4 of a lemon, but don't juice the rind as it will taste too sour. Juice and enjoy.

Osteoarthritis Treatment Juicer Recipe #3 - The Subtle Strawberry
1/3 cup of strawberries
1 cup of blueberries
1 apple

Wash and top the strawberries. Wash the blueberries. Peel, core and remove stem from the apple. Juice and enjoy! This one is real tasty.