You diet should never lack water, oil or anti-oxidizing agents. Water is the best of all lubricants. It helps your joints move and flex without problems. You also need it to eliminate toxins and liquids. Drink between 1.5 and two liters of water a day, and eat or drink soup, juice and all the herbal tea you want.

Oil is not only important for lubricating your joints but also for reducing inflamation. The fatty acids that are most helpful are the omega 3 class. You can find them in mackerel, canned anchovies, herring, salmon, swordfish, fresh tuna, trout, hake, crustaceans and mollusks.

Also include anti-oxidizing agents in your diet. You need them to neutralize the effect of free radicals and to slow the aging of joints and bones. Remember the word glutation, a combination of three acids: glutamic acid, glycine and cystine. They are found in fruits, vegetables and raw meat.

Above all take vitamin E, which relieves pain and numbness. You can find it in wheat germ oil. Vitamin C - a lack of which damages joints - is found in orange juice, lemons, grapefruit, pineapples and apples. You need one more vitamin, which is D. Take advantage of the sunshine, which stimulates production of vitamin D. This will protect your bones from injury. This vitamin is also contained in egg yolks and fish.

Avoid the following
Try not to eat potatoes, tomatoes or eggplant. Why? These are good vegetables but some experts say they can accentuate pain. Also reduce your intake of alcohol, tea, coffee and sugar because they lower levels of calcium. Substitute honey for sugar. And don't take in too much that is acidic. No more than a fourth of your daily diet should be foods that form acid: meat, fish, cheese, eggs, bread, pasta, alcohol, sugar, fried foods, tea, coffee, rice, grains, pastries, salt and other condiments:

Go on a diet
The heavier you are, the more problems your joints and bones are going to have. Keep in mind that it is they that bear the weight of your body. Go to an endocrinologist to measure your body weight index and see if you need to lose a few kilos. Dieting on your own is dangerous and in the end can do you more harm than good. Keep in mind that being skinny is not good either since it runs the risk of causing osteoporosis and fractures. Also, losing weight abruptly causes loss of muscle.

The best technique is to keep up your intake of calcium, magnesium, zinc and vitamins B, E and K. You should take 1,500 mg of calcium each day and 750 mg of magnesium. This is contained in nuts, whole grains, eggs, seafood and dairy products; sources of calcium are milk and its byproducts, vegetables, eggs, nuts, sesame, soy, fish and grains. Vitamins B, E and K are found in beer yeast, wheat germ, pumpkin seeds, sesame, apricots, whole grains and codliver oil.

Herbal teas that work against pain
It is best to drink teas made from diuretic plants such as horsetail, stinging nettle and sarsaparilla.
� Horsetail. Rich in flavonoids and mineral salts. This makes the plant diuretic and remineralising. It is ideal for sprains and factures. It can be taken as tea, in powder, tablets, as juice from the plant and also exists as cream and lotion. But stop using it if it causes digestive trouble or you are pregnant.

� Stinging nettle. Rich in flavonoids such as quercetol, organic acids, mucilage, mineral salts and tannins. Good for joint pain. Taken as tea, decoction, tincture, juice from the plant, syrup, tablets, ointment or even in a soup. But in large quantities it can irritate the stomach. People with hypertension, renal problems or heart trouble should avoid it.

� Sarsaparilla. Contains saponins, starch, essential oil, tannins and mineral salts. It is a big help in cases of rheumatism in the joints. Taken as tea, tincture, decoction, powder or tablets. Large doses can cause gastroenteritis.