Oh rats! The finger joint inflammation is ramping up again, though it isn't too severe. Mostly just swelling and stiffness at this point. I soaked the hands in a bucket of warm Epsom salt soultion while moving the fingers around in the solution this morning and that has helped.

I haven't been consuming anything with oxalic acid in it...so that can't be the only cause for the inflammation. In fact I haven't been consuming much of anything as my appetite is off due to having a virus.

I'm on day 4 of a moderately severe head and chest cold so maybe that additional physical stress is pressing the immune system into high gear; and is driving the inflammation to affect the joints as well.
Thankfully, other than the typical cough and sinus stuff from the cold and some increased fatigue, no other symptoms have appeared.

Trish, I think that your assessment may be correct for me as well...that this is another auto-immune reaction of some sort. Maybe diet plays a part in firing it up or making things worse, but I'm now convinced that its cause isn't just a dietary thing alone.

Hopefully the finger and hand joints will settle down as the cold abates.

In the mean time, I'm going to make a pot of soup this morning. I have a recipe for a really nutritious/anti-inflammation one that always goes down well when the appetite isn't happening. It calls for things that I have in the garden; carrots, cauliflower, cabbage, ginger (yes, I grow my own), onions and garlic.

I need to get some calories and protein into the system as I've been losing weight over the last few days; so I'm going to over cook some quinoa & rice pasta and blend that up to thicken it.
Maybe the ginger and garlic will help reduce the inflammation.

With love, Erika