The debilitating effects of chronic rheumatoid arthritis can definitely be softened, and nearly always to a great degree. Rheumatoid arthritis relief is possible by nutrition and exercise.
People suffering from rheumatoid arthritis have twice the risk of dying as compared to the general population. It is the reduced muscle mass that contributes to this risk. The fact is that people who are acutely ill tend to stop eating. But while fasting tends to puts a normal, healthy person into some kind of a metabolic mode that tends to burn fat but spares protein, but in case of stress of major trauma or illness, the body tends to burn its own protein.
This means that rheumatoid arthritis relief includes eating more protein than normal, healthy individuals. But simply eating more protein will not lead to an increase in the stores of protein in the body. This is because the body tends to store the protein as fat, as muscle is not being built. Resistance exercise, such as leg lifts and arm exercises by using weights, helps to build muscle so that protein can be stored.
Also, there are certain important B vitamins which are often deficient in people having with rheumatoid arthritis. These include B6, B12, as well as folate. Hence, supplements are important for providing rheumatoid arthritis relief, particularly in elderly people. This is because some of whom lose the ability of being able to absorb B12 from food, but they can still absorb it from the pills. Much of the damage inflicted by rheumatoid arthritis upon the body is the result of the free radicals. These free radicals are the fast-moving, destructive atoms, which are created by smoking, and by inhaling pollutants, or getting exposed to the ultraviolet radiation coming from the sun. Free radicals circulate throughout the body and damage cells.