Fat Consumption And Arthritis
In my thirties, I began experiencing painful arthritis. This seemed too young an age. Suspecting I had done something to bring it on, I began looking for the cause. What I discovered helped me to eliminate the problem.
Arthritis is a painful inflammation of the joints. Research shows that "oxidative stress" is a factor, and that it can be induced by eating oxidized fats (see p. 4 of this article). Oxidized fats are those that have been exposed to oxygen (heat and light also).
"I can't eat cheese," said an elderly friend of mine. "It makes my arthritis worse." That figures, I thought. In the process of making cheese, and especially cooking with it, the fat becomes oxidized.
Fat is a healthful article of diet when eaten the way nature intended. Milk was designed to be sucked directly from mother's breast. In commercial production, however, it is exposed to the air and oxidizes. Frying and baking dairy products accelerates the process (but eating them raw risks contamination).
Nuts, grains, and fruits like avocado also have fat. Even after harvesting, these oils remain relatively stable, in the oval-shaped package where they formed. When the hull is broken, however, oxidation occurs (especially in extracted oil).
I found out the hard way. Thinking to save money, I purchased a large container of soy protein powder, on sale. (It was near the expiration date.) Consuming some that evening, I awoke the next morning with terrific stiffness in all my joints. I felt like an old man. I couldn't even turn my head without pain.
Soy is a high fat bean. In powdered form, the bean can no longer shelter it's oil from the surrounding air. Oxidation skyrockets. This is true of all powdered products that contain fat. Egg and milk powder are especially susceptible.
Perhaps you are familiar with the peculiar smell of something that has "gone rancid," such as vegetable oil that sat unused. Nature is warning you, through your olfactory senses, that oxidation has occurred in the extreme. But less noticeable levels of oxidation are still harmful, and rancid oil can go undetected if already mixed with other ingredients (masking the smell).
"I can't eat cheese," said an elderly friend of mine. "It makes my arthritis worse." That figures, I thought. In the process of making cheese, and especially cooking with it, the fat becomes oxidized.
Fat is a healthful article of diet when eaten the way nature intended. Milk was designed to be sucked directly from mother's breast. In commercial production, however, it is exposed to the air and oxidizes. Frying and baking dairy products accelerates the process (but eating them raw risks contamination).
Nuts, grains, and fruits like avocado also have fat. Even after harvesting, these oils remain relatively stable, in the oval-shaped package where they formed. When the hull is broken, however, oxidation occurs (especially in extracted oil).
I found out the hard way. Thinking to save money, I purchased a large container of soy protein powder, on sale. (It was near the expiration date.) Consuming some that evening, I awoke the next morning with terrific stiffness in all my joints. I felt like an old man. I couldn't even turn my head without pain.
Soy is a high fat bean. In powdered form, the bean can no longer shelter it's oil from the surrounding air. Oxidation skyrockets. This is true of all powdered products that contain fat. Egg and milk powder are especially susceptible.
Perhaps you are familiar with the peculiar smell of something that has "gone rancid," such as vegetable oil that sat unused. Nature is warning you, through your olfactory senses, that oxidation has occurred in the extreme. But less noticeable levels of oxidation are still harmful, and rancid oil can go undetected if already mixed with other ingredients (masking the smell).
I also learned this, first-hand. At the time, I had been frequenting a discount market that sold dented cans and closeout items. Many of them were past their expiration date. These foods didn't taste any worse for ware. But my aching joints told a different story.
Relief came to me in the form of black-cherry juice concentrate; a powerful anti-oxidant. Avoiding further injury, however, has come in steering clear of oxidized fats. They are a chief culprit in causing arthritis.
Relief came to me in the form of black-cherry juice concentrate; a powerful anti-oxidant. Avoiding further injury, however, has come in steering clear of oxidized fats. They are a chief culprit in causing arthritis.
