Objective: This study compared the dietary habits of patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
Methods: The nutritional status of 56 patients, seen at the Rheumatology Outpatient Clinic and diagnosed with RA based on the ACR-2010 criteria, was compared with that of 28 patients diagnosed with AS using the modified New York criteria. Nutritional status was determined using a form that was filled out during face-to-face interviews with all patients. Patient demographics, disease activity, smoking and alcohol use, concomitant diseases, disease duration and nutritional status were determined using a questionnaire.
Results: RA patients consumed butter on 2 days a week, and AS patients on 1 day per month. Yoghurt was consumed by RA patients daily and by AS patients 3 days a week.
Conclusions: Compared to the diet of AS patients, the diet of RA patients was richer in protein and lipids. The impact of diet on these two diseases remains to be determined in large-scale studies.
Keywords: Ankylosing spondylitis; diet; rheumatoid arthritis.