My brother, the baby of the family, is a busy hard-working chiropractor. He has had plenty of experience with pain and injury. He has won titles in body building and has suffered serious injury in motor cycle accidents that resulted in hospitalization, infections, and their complications. His simple answer to inflammatory arthritic pain is the same as some Asian martial artists–ice. One highly revered Chinese doctor I know once said, “Ice is like cortisone.” It reduces swelling pain. You can apply it locally. It cannot cause stomach ulcers. It is cheap and effective for temporary relief. Why is it important to avoid drug side-effects when treating inflammatory arthritis? See this quote from a recent Harvard study:
Although no drug exists that will cure or reverse the progression of osteoarthritis, it is usually possible to alleviate pain and inflammation. Medications form the basis of treatment for osteoarthritis, but are best used in conjunction with other pain relief strategies, such as exercising to build your muscles and protecting your joints from injury or overuse.
To relieve the pain and stiffness of osteoarthritis, the first step is usually an over-the-counter pain reliever. Doctors often recommend acetaminophen (Tylenol) first because it’s often effective for mild pain and easy on the stomach. But remember that acetaminophen, like any drug, has its own risks—especially for the liver.
In the past few years, however, it has become clear that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may be more effective than acetaminophen in treating osteoarthritis because they not only relieve pain, but also reduce inflammation that contributes to pain, swelling, and stiffness.
The arsenal of NSAIDs has grown over the years to include about 20 different drugs. Among them are such well-known medications as aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, others), and naproxen (Aleve, Naprosyn, others). These drugs reduce pain and inflammation by blocking the production of prostaglandins, leukotrienes, and other chemical mediators. For many people, they are slightly more effective than Tylenol, especially during flare-ups of pain.
The most common side effects of these medications are stomach problems, including gastrointestinal bleeding and ulcers, often occurring without warning. That is because NSAIDs work by inhibiting both the COX-1 enzyme, which helps protect the stomach lining from the corrosive effects of stomach acids and digestive enzymes, and the COX-2 enzyme, which causes pain and inflammation. One widely quoted paper, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 1999, estimated that each year these drugs contribute to at least 16,500 deaths and more than 100,000 hospitalizations in the United States. A more recent study of people in Spain concluded that roughly one in three hospitalizations or deaths due to gastrointestinal bleeding could be attributed to NSAIDs.
What else can you do?
*Exercise gently – like floating in water so that your muscles can move but your weight is not on your joints.
*Eat plenty of cooling, refreshing, cleansing foods like watermelon, bing cherries, celery, apples, and cucumber. Add aloe juice to water for constipation, cramps, PMS, or acidity as needed.
*Rest
*Reduce inflammation and slow joint damage with supplements such as:
—Yucca (estrogenic, anti-inflammatory) 6 – 12 capsules a day can reduce painful knees and improve movement
—Turmeric – (anti-inflamatory) add 1/4 tsp to a pot of green tea or glass of water
*Things I am experimenting with: shark cartilage, vitamin D3
These are recommended for reducing tumors and preventing their spread. Vitamin D3 is an important factor in longevity. Do they increase wellness and improve circulation to the point of improving other chronic conditions like arthritis? Does shark cartilage go to cartilage in our body? They may not have tested it, but if it helps–why not?
What would you do for psoriatic arthritis? My son has battled that for years and he has Typ I diabetes.
Best,
Eva
Hello Eva
For background info I looked into type 1 diabetes and found this in (( )):
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((Type 1 diabetes most often occurs in children and young adults. People who have type 1 diabetes produce little or no insulin. Insulin is a hormone that is produced by the beta cells of the pancreas. Insulin helps glucose (a type of sugar) get into cells. For good health, you need a finely-tuned balance of insulin and glucose.
The immune system of people with type 1 diabetes slowly destroys the beta cells. When your immune system attacks your own cells, it’s called an autoimmune attack. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease.
The destruction of beta cells doesn’t happen overnight. It goes on for years. The diagnosis of type 1 diabetes usually comes when about 90 percent of the beta cells have been destroyed.
At this point, the person needs injected insulin. But the few beta cells that are left continue to help the body control blood glucose levels. This is called the “honeymoon” period. In most people, the honeymoon lasts a few weeks to a few months. In a few people, it lasts longer.
Your body uses a type of white blood cells, called T cells, to attack cells and germs that are foreign to your body. In type 1 diabetes, your body acts as if the insulin-producing beta cells in your pancreas are foreign and allows certain T cells to attack the beta cells.
To slow the effects of type 1 diabetes, you need a way to protect the beta cells from your body’s attack.))
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The best thing I can recommend now for auto immune illnesses is medicinal mushrooms. They are effective in many other auto immune disorders like arthritis.
Extracts of reishi can help.
For example reishi plus extract from eastearthtrade.com
You can also cook reishi, shiitake in a crockpot
a handful of each cooked on high heat for 3 hrs or low heat for 6.
Drink 1 glass daily.
They are cooling and therefor can improve skin problems as well as diabetes.
If you do not want to cook you can order Power Mushrooms pills from Health Concerns.
Strictly for complexion – also add Skin Balance pills from Health Concerns.
I often recommend Health Concerns because their products are very pure and tested.
I have also heard good results from reishi plus extract – to enhance energy and balance immunity.
First make sure he is not allergic to mushrooms: Some -a few- people are allergic – throat swells, difficult breathing symptoms or prolonged rash.
He may have some temporary “heat” symptoms when 1st using mushrooms – flushing.- because heat is coming out through skin. but it should go away soon.