Arthritis prevention, from public health sources.

You cannot change your age or your genes, but you can lower your chances of some kinds of arthritis, or delay them. This reference summarizes what the CDC and the National Institutes of Health say, with a link to every source.

Four older adults walking and stretching on a tree-lined park path in morning sun; two pause for standing quad stretches.

Five-step diagram: move most days, keep a healthy weight, protect joints from injury, do not smoke, see a provider about joint pain.

Labeled illustration of a knee joint showing the thigh bone, cartilage, kneecap, meniscus, and shin bone. — Knees and hips carry body weight, which is one reason they are common sites of osteoarthritis.

How to prevent arthritis — the five steps with the strongest public health support.
Risk factors — which ones you can change, and which you cannot.
Osteoarthritis prevention — the most common type, and how to delay it.
Rheumatoid arthritis risk — an autoimmune disease, smoking, and early care.
Gout prevention — uric acid, diet, and flares.
Exercise for joint health — how much, and which activities are joint-friendly.
Healthy weight and your joints — why weight matters most for knees and hips.
Joint injury prevention — why an old injury can become arthritis later.
Healthy eating patterns — three generally healthy ways of eating, with example meals, grocery lists, and prep tips. Not a treatment, and not medical advice.
Sources — every public source this site uses.

Healthy eating guides

Many people choose a generally healthy eating pattern. You can get a PDF for a Mediterranean-style pattern, a plant-forward pattern, or a balanced plate. Each guide has example meals, a grocery list, and prep tips. These guides are not part of the arthritis guidance above, and they are not a way to treat or prevent any condition.

This is general nutrition information, not medical advice. It is not a diagnosis or a treatment, and it does not treat, cure, prevent, reverse, or improve arthritis or any other condition. Talk with a qualified clinician before you change what you eat, especially if you have a health condition or take medication.

Fields marked are required. Your name, email, and phone are used to send the guide and to follow up about it.

Name

Error: Enter your name.

Required so we can email the guide.

Error: Enter an email address.

Phone (optional)

Which guide do you want?

Mediterranean-style eating pattern

Plant-forward eating pattern

Balanced-plate eating pattern

Error: Choose one guide.

JavaScript is required to email the guide. You can still open the files: Mediterranean-style, plant-forward, and balanced plate.

The full write-ups are on healthy eating patterns.

This page summarizes public health guidance. It is not medical advice and cannot diagnose joint pain. If you have pain, swelling, or stiffness that lasts, see a health care provider. The eating guides above are general nutrition information. They do not treat, cure, prevent, reverse, or improve arthritis or any other condition.