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    Preventing and Reducing Knee and Joint Pain

    May 12, 2025 8 min read

    Preventing and Reducing Knee and Joint Pain

    The weather is finally warmer, the daylight lasting longer and the outdoors are calling! It is time to bust out the bike gear, pickleball paddles, golf clubs, fishing poles, kayak, swim goggles, and those walking shoes. Getting a good dose of vitamin N, aka Nature, along with moving your body in a way you enjoy every day are two important things you can incorporate to support your overall health and well-being.

    But what if you are experiencing pain in your joints? Do you have chronic or occasional knee pain? Doing the activities you love, like going for a walk or getting into your garden, can become challenging if you are experiencing stiffness or pain in your hips, knees, and other joints.

    Understanding Arthritis: Causes and Types of Joint Pain

    Arthritis pain comes from the swelling and tenderness in the joints. Osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis are the two most common types of arthritis pain.

    In a healthy functioning joint, cartilage cushions the ends of the bones to assist in smooth joint motion. When an injury or wear and tear over time happens to the cartilage, there's deterioration of connective tissue that holds the muscle to bone. It can cause pain and restriction due to the friction of bone on bone. This is what happens with osteoarthritis.

    Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune condition where the immune system attacks the lining of the joints and can eventually break down the joint and bone. The lining and tissues become swollen and inflamed, which causes pain.

    Dietary Strategies for Reducing Inflammation and Arthritis Pain

    Certain foods have anti-inflammatory properties. One step you can take in your pain management plan is to consider which foods you put at the end of your fork. Start by looking at the foods and drinks you consume on a regular basis. There may be some foods you add in more frequently and others you choose to subtract to support a reduction of overall inflammation in your body.

    At our sister company Nutritional Weight & Wellness, we have seen many clients reduce joint pain after choosing to start eating the Weight & Wellness way, which means eating a diet focused on whole, nutrient rich foods full of essential vitamins, minerals and amino acids. This balanced, whole foods approach offers many health benefits, including supporting joint health and inhibiting inflammation.

    What Inflammatory Foods Lead to Knee and Joint Pain? 

    If you guessed eating low nutrient, low fiber, ultra-processed foods - you are correct! These foods along with alcohol promote inflammation and can lead to more joint swelling and knee pain.

    Regularly eating foods with a surplus of added sugars, refined grains that offer few nutrients can create inflammatory responses in the body. This inflammation can then lead to the actual physical pain you feel in your knees and joints. The joints and connective tissue are particularly vulnerable to inflammation.

    Each person can have different inflammation and pain triggers. Common triggers of inflammation and pain we see include diets high in refined oils and trans fats, added sugar, refined carbohydrates and alcohol. Some individuals may have food sensitivities to things like dairy or gluten. If you're curious if dairy is an issue for you, learn more about Dairy Intolerance: Causes, Symptoms, Solutions.

    Gluten and Joint Inflammation

    If you live with the autoimmune condition, celiac, or experience non-celiac gluten sensitivity, foods with gluten lead to inflammation in the body. There is no such thing as a “typical” celiac case, so it's important to do a deep dive into your own inflammatory markers.

    It may surprise you to learn there are at least 200 symptoms of celiac and adults with this disease are less likely to have digestive symptoms, with only one third experiencing diarrhea. Adults with celiac are more likely to experience other symptoms including bone or joint pain, arthritis, osteoporosis, or osteopenia.

    In nutrition counseling sessions, after conducting a nutrition assessment, I recommend clients be screened for celiac WHILE they are eating enough foods with gluten every day to rule celiac out BEFORE going through a gluten elimination trial. If tests come back negative, I may recommend a gluten free trial to rule out non-celiac gluten sensitivity.

    For some clients after a negative celiac screening, they try a gluten free plan and discover their pain and inflammation greatly reduce. If they truly have non-celiac gluten sensitivity, their pain and inflammation often come right back when they go through a gluten reintroduction trial. The reintroduction process helps us determine if a person is experiencing non-celiac gluten sensitivity and if they benefit in the long term from a gluten free plan to reduce joint pain.

    Foods To Avoid For Joint Pain:

    • Alcohol
    • Ultra processed foods, like white bread, crackers, chips, pasta, cake, cookies.
    • Industrial fats - look at ingredient lists and if it lists “partially hydrogenated”, then the food contains trans fats.
    • Refined oils - plant oils, like vegetable oil or soybean oil, are often extracted using chemical solvents. These unhealthy fats are susceptible to oxidation.
    • High sugar foods, like soda, juice, candy, and pastries.
    • Gluten - if you have celiac or non-celiac gluten sensitivity. Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, barley and often contaminated in oats. It can be in many foods including sauces, condiments (like salad dressings), soups, and spice mixes.
    • Dairy, like milk, cheese, and yogurt, if you are dairy sensitive. Not everyone needs to avoid dairy. For example, I live with lactose intolerance, yet dairy is one of my favorite food groups. When I choose lactose free or lower lactose dairy foods, my system is happy and okay. Work with a dietitian when considering food sensitivities and going through elimination and reintroduction trials.

    My fellow dietitian coworkers and I have had clients who stopped eating specific foods like those with gluten or added sugars for a trial period. Upon reintroduction of said food(s) they report feeling their pain in their joints return within 24 hours.

    Working one on one with a licensed dietitian or nutritionist can be helpful. Our goal as registered dietitian nutritionists is to not over restrict a person's diet. I like the saying: “be the pencil and not the eraser”. What foods can we ADD to your day, like a pencil, that help inhibit inflammation and pain?

    What Anti-Inflammatory Foods Help Relieve Joint Pain? 

    Just like there are foods that INCREASE inflammation in the body, there are also foods that help DECREASE inflammation. We're looking for foods that are nutrient-dense with plenty of naturally occurring vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, antioxidants, and amino acids that nourish, protect, and give energy to our cells. These foods help your body build the cartilage and ligaments and strengthen connective tissue that supports healthy joints.

    Foods To Include:

    • Fatty fish - what counts as fatty fish? Think SMASH: Salmon (wild caught is great), Mackerel, Anchovies, Sardines, Herring. These fish offer some of the highest levels of omega 3 fatty acids from EPA and DHA.

      • Sidenote - Some canned fish companies, such as Wild Planet® or SafeCatch®, hand pack tuna with no water, oil or filler added (no need to drain the tuna). The process results in MORE omega 3 fatty acids being retained compared to traditional canned tuna processing, making them a convenient option to enjoy for an omega-3 boost.

    • Meats, like chicken, turkey, beef. If you are in the position to “level up” in the protein department, consider looking for 100% grass-fed beef, lamb or goat, pasture-raised chicken thighs or pasture raised pork (Sidenote – pigs don't eat grass).

    • Pasture-raised eggs - chickens are NOT naturally vegetarians. For healthy chickens and eggs, we want them eating a mixture of things out in the pasture.

    • Vegetables, like dark leafy greens, cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts), sweet potato, squash. Many vegetables and fruits are high in vitamin C. Vitamin C is needed to produce collagen, the most abundant protein in the body.

    • Fruits, like apples, strawberries, blueberries, kiwi fruit, citrus fruits like oranges, peaches, and pears. Tart cherry juice and Bing cherries may support joints as they have polyphenol, anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory properties.

    • Nuts and seeds – some of my favorites include walnuts or pecans and pumpkin seeds.

    • Whole grains and legumes, like brown rice, wild rice, quinoa, sorghum, teff, lentils, and chickpeas.

    • Healthy fats for cooking, like extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil, and grass-fed butter.

    • Seasonings and natural flavor, like garlic, onion, ginger, turmeric, bone broth. Turmeric is commonly recommended for muscle recovery due to its anti-inflammatory properties. Incorporating 1-3 teaspoons in your day may have benefits.

    DID YOU KNOW?

    • Pasture-Raised refers to WHERE the animal grazed (outside on pasture). Pasture-Raised are not always grass-fed animals. The animals might be fed grain indoors by farmers, especially in the winter months (Minnesota and Wisconsin winters are COLD). Also, grass-fed animals are not always pasture-raised animals because they may spend a significant portion of time indoors.
    • Grass-Fed refers to WHAT the animal ate. ALL cows start off grass-fed. Some are also grass-finished while conventional cows are grain-finished.

    This isn't an exhaustive list of all the anti-inflammatory foods for knee pain you can choose from to reduce inflammation but they all fuel and provide the body with nutrients to reduce pain associated with inflammation.

    How many of these foods do you eat on a regular basis with anti-inflammatory properties? Is your current eating plan helping to alleviate your pain or adding to it? Be the pencil and ADD some anti-inflammatory foods to your day.

    Supplements We Recommend For Healthy Joints

    While we always emphasize food first, sometimes a healthy diet and food choices alone are not quite enough to completely kick knee and joint pain to the curb, especially if the body has been trying to fight inflammation for an extended period.

    For extra healing to fight inflammation and improve joint pain, we often recommend adding the following supplements that have an anti-inflammatory effect:

    Omega-3

    Omega-3 fatty acids are a well-known anti-inflammatory supplement that contains essential fatty acids from cold-water fatty fish, also helps reduce joint pain.

    We recommend starting 3000-4000mg from EPA and DHA in fish oil supplements daily.

    Curcumin400

    Curcumin is the major polyphenol and anti-inflammatory compound found in turmeric. Curcumin400 was crafted to make sure this compound is in the most bioavailable form so the body can ingest all its antioxidant properties. We recommend two soft gels daily and see how you feel.

    Vitamin D3

    Vitamin D3 is probably our top supplement we recommend to clients. Most of us in Minnesota and Wisconsin don't get enough vitamin D from sunlight and can easily become deficient. Vitamin D supports your immune system, bone health, heart health and even your mood.

    Depending on your current levels we often recommend 1000-5000 IU of Vitamin D3 a day.

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    Recap On How To Reduce Join Pain

    There are plenty of doable steps to take to relieve joint pain and improve overall joint health.

    • Remove the potential food sources that may be causing inflammation in your body, like gluten, sugar, processed carbs, soda, alcohol, and inflammatory damaged fats.
    • Add more anti-inflammatory diet foods onto your plate, making sure to incorporate plenty of natural fats for lubrication, animal protein for the amino acids, and plenty of fruits and vegetables for their antioxidants and essential minerals and vitamins.
    • With your doctors okay, consider adding a supplement to help reduce your overall inflammation, like a fish oil supplement, and a supplement that helps target healthy joints.

    While changing your food sounds simple, many people find they benefit from more guidance and support, which is why a nutrition consultation is often helpful, especially if you're looking to add in some supportive supplements, but you don't know where to start.

    For more information on this topic, check out these resources:

    Listen: Arthritis & Joint Pain

    Read: Reduce Inflammation to Support Weight Loss & Metabolism

    Inspire: check out Bonnie's success story where she reduced her chronic pain

    NutriKey Products Mentioned:

    Omega-3 1000 and Omega-3 Extra Strength - containing essential fatty acids from cold-water fish

    Curcumin400- featuring innovative BioCurc®—a patented ingredient that has been shown in clinical studies to surpass the bioavailability of virtually every other curcumin/turmeric extract product on the market

    Vitamin D3 1000 and Vitamin D3 5000- 1000 IUs or 5000 IUs in each softgel for the right dose in the most bioavailable form