Low Glycemic Arthritis Diet Food List

The following low glycemic arthritis diet foods all have a GI (glycemic index) of 55 or less. Remember, for the first month, try to eat only foods off this list to help decrease inflammation.

If you're hungry, eat. Just eat off this list and nothing else. If you feel like you need a little something extra, I use a green drink and a low glycemic protein powder as either breakfast on the days I'm rushed or as a snack if I'm hungry. It has the equivalent of 10 servings of fruits and vegetables, and because it's made with stevia (a natural sweetener), it won't cause a blood sugar spike. I mix the green drink with 2-4 ounces of a high antioxidant juice (like pomegranate, blueberry, or acai juice) and water. If I'm super hungry, I'll add a banana and some ice and blend the whole thing into a smoothie. Yum!

Protein

Canned tuna, salmon, or sardines (packed in water)

Chicken, turkey, or hen (skinless)

Eggs or egg whites

Liquid egg substitute

Fresh fish (salmon, tuna, sardines, flounder, snapper, trout, halibut, etc.)

Red meat (beef, pork, lamb, buffalo, or venison, etc.) Limit this to once or twice a week and use lean cuts

Seafood (shrimp, scallops, clams, lobster, calamari, octopus, mussels, etc.)

Soy sausage (low fat)

Tofu/tempeh (firm or soft)

Turkey bacon (low fat)

Turkey/chicken sausage (low fat)

Veggie or garden burger (low fat or nonfat)

Lean veal

Dairy and Dairy Substitutes

Soy cheese (nonfat)

Cottage cheese (1% fat)

Almond milk

Nut milk

Oat milk

Skim or 1% milk

Soy or rice milk (1% fat or nonfat, no sugar added)

Yogurt or soy yogurt (1% or nonfat, no sugar added)

Vegetables and Salad Greens

Arugula

Asparagus

Avocado

Bean sprouts

Bell peppers (green, red, or yellow)

Bok choy

Broccoli

Brussels sprouts

Cabbage (red or white)

Cauliflower

Celery

Collard greens

Cucumbers

Dandelion greens

Eggplant

Endive

Green beans

Hot peppers

Jicama

Kale

Leeks

Lettuce (all types)

Mushrooms

Okra

Olives (limit to 5)

Onions

Parsley

Radishes

Sauerkraut (no sugar added)

Snow peas

Spinach

Tomatoes

Tomato juice (no sugar added), tomato paste, and tomato soup

Vegetable juice (no salt) and Vegetable soup (no fat)

Water chestnuts

Watercress

Yellow squash

Zucchini

Winter squash (acorn, butternut, spaghetti)

Fruit

Apricots (dried)

Banana (less ripe)

Berries (blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, boysenberries)

Cherries

Grapes

Grapefruit

Guava

Honeydew

Kiwi

Kumuats

Lemon

Lychees

Mandarin orange

Mango

Nectarine

Orange

Peach

Pear

Pineapple

Plums

Pomegranate

Carbohydrates (Beans, Grains, and Cereal)

Beans (red, black, garbanzo, lima, mung, pinto, soy, canellini)

Peas (green, black eyed)

Lentils

Barley (pearled or hulled)

Bran (oat, rice, wheat)

Bread (100% whole wheat/high fiber or low carb - look for 5 grams or fiber or more per slice)

Buckwheat (kasha, groats)

Bulgur wheat

Egg noodles (2-3 ounces per serving - watch portion sizes!)

Nuts, seeds

Brown rice (steamed - 1/3 cup - watch portion sizes!)

Rye

Tortilla, corn (1-2 small - watch portion sizes!)

Udon noodles

An easy way to approach your first month is to just print out this page and eat what's on it. And don't eat what's not on it. Remember, you can do anything for a month, right? :)

If you're in doubt, don't eat it.

There's really no need to count calories. I do want you to watch your portions on the carbohydrates. They're only low glycemic in the portions indicated and, in the case of breads, with a high fiber content. If your portions are big, the glycemic index goes up.

Drink plenty of water, take your time eating meals, and eat until satisfied - NOT stuffed.

Enjoy!

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