The Complicated Relationship Between Alcohol Consumption and Rheumatoid Arthritis

Another negative effect of too much alcohol is that you will gain weight. Most doctors recommend losing weight when afflicted with RA, as that will lessen the strain on your joints when moving around. Alcohol should be cut out or down significantly if you are trying to lose weight.

Diet is often an important part of the RA recovery process, especially when it comes to getting nutrients like magnesium or thiamine (vitamin B1). Alcohol will flush these nutrients out of the body, reducing the effectiveness of the diet and causing nerve pain and other problems when walking or running.