If you’re worried about your risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis, then it might be worth switching up your breakfast routine because a new study suggests that eating fibre-rich muesli every day could help…
Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease that causes pain, swelling and stiffness in the joints, with symptoms usually affecting the hands, feet and wrists.
Now, a team from Germany’s Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg have found that a fibre-rich diet may have a positive effect on chronic inflammatory joint diseases, such as arthritis.
Researchers believe that a healthy diet, full of fibre, positively influences intestinal bacteria in the gut. This in turn affects the immune system and may have a knock-on effect on autoimmune diseases.
Additionally, the team, writing in Nature Communications, believe a fibre-rich diet can help lead to stronger bones, meaning the findings also have implications for conditions such as osteoporosis.
‘We were able to show that a bacteria-friendly diet has an anti-inflammatory effect, as well as a positive effect on bone density,’ explained study leader Dr Mario Zaiss in a release.
‘Our findings offer a promising approach for developing innovative therapies for inflammatory joint diseases as well as for treating osteoporosis, which is often suffered by women after the menopause,’ Dr Zaiss continued.
‘We are not able to give any specific recommendations for a bacteria-friendly diet at the moment, but eating muesli every morning as well as enough fruit and vegetables throughout the day helps to maintain a rich variety of bacterial species.’
