"The Essential Arthritis Cookbook" has more than just recipes for those with all types of chronic pain diseases. It was written by the Arthritis Center and the Department of Nutrition Sciences at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
I received this book via "Vibrant Lives", a community of volunteers who help patients on the self-injecting Rheumatoid Arthritis drug Enbrel. I have a moderate case of RA that, thanks to the aforementioned drug I am able to function very well. But I do have my days. This is where this book comes into play.
While it is essentially a cookbook, what I appreciated were the first 80 pages. Those who put it together gave very useful helpful hints on how to make kitchen preparation an easier process to maneuver. Such as how to sit and cut up vegetables, some tools and where to purchase them. What I also liked was the time they spent on nutrition and how certain foods will react with some of the medications that are so readily part of our lives. Some of it was common sense, some of it could have been talked about in a little less simplistic way. However, I realize that the book has been written for the masses, not all people are "foodies", nutrition fanatics or care to know more than the basics of their disease, so the easy manner of the book is probably a good thing.
Being a cookbook, the remaining 150+ pages have recipes and daily eating plans that are low in fat, salt, sugar and rely a lot on pre-prepared food. I understand the need to rely on canned fruits that are in their own juices and pre-sliced and produce that has been triple washed. The menus, again, are meant for those who are mainly suffering from anyone of the joint diseases in a severe form. They are healthy, easy and have markers as to when "rest breaks" are needed to conserve strength.
This would probably be a good book for rheumatologists to suggest to their patients as a good beginning reference edition to get them started back on the road to autonomy.
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