Vitamins for arthritis include folic acid and vitamins C, B6, B12, D and E. It has been discovered that sufferers of arthritis tend to be deficient in these nutrients and that deficiencies can be worsened by arthritis medications. Vitamins, minerals and other nutrients all work together, so taking vitamins for arthritis might not be sufficient to control the condition if there are other deficiencies in the patient's diet.
Ascorbic acid, which is vitamin C, can benefit sufferers of arthritis in a variety of ways. For example, this nutrient is involved in the conversion of the inactive form of folic acid, a vitamin belonging to the B complex family, to its active form. Folic acid itself is considered to be one of the most important vitamins for arthritis. It might said, therefore, that ascorbic acid is indirectly good for treating this condition naturally. Vitamin C, however, might also be directly involved in helping to fight arthritis, because it regulates a number of essential bodily functions.
Unregulated bodily functions could be an underlying cause of rheumatoid arthritis. This condition involves the body attacking itself when its own cells responsible for fighting infection attack tissues of the joints, resulting in inflammation. Vitamin B12, also known as cobalamin, is on the list of vitamins for arthritis because it is necessary for the proper functioning of every cell in the body. Medical conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis are not fully understood by doctors, but it is understood that there is a problem with how the cells of the body function.
Pyridoxine, or vitamin B6, is another one of the vitamins for arthritis that is essential to the overall functions that take place in the body. It helps to produce regulatory substances. Tocopherol, or vitamin E, acts as an effective antioxidant by accepting oxygen that would otherwise unite with other substances in the body and cause destruction. Although the role of vitamin D, also called calciferol, in the natural treatment of arthritis is not completely understood, patients who have this condition are almost always deficient in this nutrient. The same can be said of the role of folic acid.