Alcohol and RA? SUPRISE!!!

I truly agree w/this study. I have a relative who has chronic RA. He use to be a daily drinker and he was not in pain or as much pain as he is today once he quite drinking. Since he quit drinking, the RA has worsen. He now needs daily injection medicine and he was told that in a couple of more years he may not be able to handle working anymore. This all went down hill once he stopped drinking. Alcohol surpresses the pain so when you stop drinking the symptoms progress. Although it is a good thing he stopped drinking, sometimes he wishes he did not because he is so uncomfortable everyday of his life. He is a very intelligent, hard worker and since the RA he is now limited to how much he can accomplish in a day. I was always a social drinker and I didn't feel so much discomfort up until I complete stop drinking at all. I don't even drink socially since I was diagnosed w/ breast cancer 3 years ago. I too find that my pain worsen and what I thought was just FM, the doc told me it is the beginning of RA. Perhaps I should go back to drinking socially (just kidding). I know this sounds crazy, but I do believe that this study is pretty accurate. Take care and thanks for sharing.
Simplistic007

Well my Uncle did hard liquore not of the girlie frutiy drinks. He did straight up Vodka, Bacardi, Rum. I also know of someone else (a female) who drank the same type of drinks and her RA was surpressed. When she stopped, it worsen. I was a social drinker, but never the hard stuff only baileys, khalua, white russians not anything die hard.
simplistic007

I don't think alcohol helps the RA. It surpresses the pain when you are already a drinker. One drink or two here and there is not going to make a difference. I would say this relates more for those who are heavier drinkers. Because they are heavy drinkers, the RA is always surpressed until they stop drinking. Then this is when the symptoms awaken and there is no going back. This is what I have observed from a couple of heavy drinkers i personally know. they have chronic RA today. They had surpressed the symptoms for a long time and when they stop drinking heavily and stopped alcohol. Today there in so much discomfort and now they depend on regular medication. Before they stopped drinking, they were not on any meds because they didn't really feel that sick. If you are on meds, I don't think it is a good idea to drink anyway. I would think this would make you sick. I am sure there will be more studies. I did hear smoking worsens RA too. Thanks for sharing this information, but one never knows what really will work and what really does not. Just live as healthy as you can and manage the pain as best we can. Hopefully it won't get worse than what it already is. My biggest fear is becoming cripple some day when I get older. God Bless.
simplistic007

Thanks everybody for comments :) Just to clarify - I don't plan to change my habits and suddenly start to drink because of this article, but I thought it may be pretty controversial topic...
I defenietly preffer healthy eating, glass of wine once in 3-4 weeks at most, red wine contains antioxidants and they actually recommend it for women.
But for me.. heavy drinking and medications - NO WAY!!!