Arthritis Treated with Alternative Medicine

Wendy Owen asked:


Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease. An autoimmune disease is when our immune system turns on the body that hosts it and systematically tries to destroy it by attacking healthy body tissue such as the joints (rheumatoid arthritis), muscles (fibromyalgia), pancreas (type 1 diabetes) or nerves (multiple sclerosis).

Think of the immune system as a huge army of white blood cells ready to defend our body against attack by outside invaders such as germs, bacteria, viruses and parasites (also known as antigens). It does this by producing antibodies which fight against these external parasites.

Rheumatoid Arthritis is caused by our immune system mistakenly identifying our joints as external parasites, causing it to attack and destroy the tissues that line bone joints and cartilage. This as we know causes pain and inflammation. So why does this happen?

It’s because our immune system is compromised. Our modern lifestyle puts more and more stress on our immune system. Drugs, infections, smoking, hormone inbalances, lack of exercise and stress all play a role, whereas our diets do nothing to help. No wonder our immunity is struggling to cope!

A healthy immune system is vital for a healthy and vigorous life. More and more these days we are hearing of the increase of autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis, guillain-barre syndrome and type 1 diabetes.

If medical science has taken such great strides in the research and discovery of breakthrough knowledge and medicines, why do we seem to be getter sicker and sicker by the year?

Because conventional medicine focuses more on treating the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, than it does on the prevention and possible cure of this debilitating disease.

The side effects of the drugs used to treat rheumatoid arthritis can be quite severe. Is there a better answer?

Alternative medicine and natural cures for arthritis can help cure rheumatoid arthritis at the source. Of course there are many options in alternative medicine for alleviating pain as well, but the main aim is to deal with the cause of arthritis which in most cases is a weak immune system.

So what’s some things we can do to strengthen our immune systems?

Get sufficient sleep – There’s nothing more draining on the immune system than a sleep deprived body. Everyone has different sleep requirements, make sure you’re getting enough sleep time for your needs.

Improve your diet – This is one of the best ways to give your immunity a boost! We can use up a lot of energy just digesting the foods we eat. Eat plenty of fresh foods and cut down on junk and processed foods.

Take a supplement – Mainstream medicine is fond of telling us that food alone can give us all the nutrients we need. Well it probably could if we knew what to eat and in what quantities.

Added to the fact that we’re not all nutrition experts, our soils are depleted of natural nutrients owing to over-cultivation, chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Our food is sometimes stored for months in cold storage, allowing nutrients to leak out. Just take a supplement!

Get plenty of exercise – You knew I was going to say that, didn’t you? Exercise increases oxygen into the bloodstream, releases endorphins, the “feel-good” hormones and helps to build the muscles that support your joints.

This has been a very brief venture into the ways to boost our immune health to help prevent or alleviate autoummune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis. The spin-offs are fewer diseases like colds and flu and more energy to do the things we love.

Nathan Wei : Hyaluronic acid (HA) – also known as hyaluronan- is found in all tissues and body fluids. What this article will describe is what HA does in the joints, particularly the knee. HA is a major component of synovial fluid. Synovial fluid is the naturally-occurring lubricant found in joints. HA has a variety of functions within the joint including lubricating effects, water balance, and stress distribution through what are termed "viscoelastic properties." What this means is that at low levels of impact (standing and walking), HA has mostly lubricating properties. At high levels of impact (running and jumping), HA functions to cushion the joint. Hyaluronic acid (HA) is often used as a treatment for osteoarthritis (OA), particularly in the knee. HA therapy supplements HA in the knee, restoring the synovial fluid's ability to cushion, lubricate, and protect the knee joint. A number of different mechanisms of action are thought to be responsible for the beneficial effects of HA. These include fluid replacement, inducement of the body's own HA production by the knee joint, increase in cartilage synthesis, reduction in cartilage degradation, inhibition of inflammation, protection of the cells that make cartilage, and decrease in pain through inhibition of pain stimulus on nerve fibers within the joint. Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis. Its hallmark is the progressive breakdown of cartilage. As cartilage becomes progressively more damaged, changes in the HA within the joint also occur. Both the concentration as well as the molecular weight of HA undergo change. The reduced concentration and molecular weight of HA lead to worsening of cartilage damage, increase in inflammation within the joint, and further reduction of function of synovial fluid. Synovial fluid in patients with OA no longer performs its normal viscoelastic function. This perpetuates a cycle of reduced cushioning and lubrication leading to more damage and inflammation, and so on. Both the American College of Rheumatology and the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons list HA therapy as an alternative and supplement to oral drugs for patients in whom non-drug therapy and treatment with acetaminophen (Tylenol) has failed, especially if non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) and COX-2 inhibitors are contraindicated. The advantage of HA is not limited to just restoration of the synovial fluid's ability to cushion, lubricate, and protect the knee joint. HA also leads to pain relief and improvement in knee function and health-related quality of life. Finally, it is a localized therapy with no systemic side-effects. There is also some data that HA therapy may actually postpone the need for knee replacement surgery in some cases. Side effects of HA are minimal. The most common are local injection site reactions. Different forms of HA are available and these include Hyalgan, Synvisc, Supartz, Orthovisc, and Euflexxa. Most HA products are derived from chicken sources. The exception is Euflexxa which is bioengineered from a different source. Different injection schedules are required for the different preparations. Some require weekly injections for 3 weeks; others are weekly injections for 5 weeks. The important things to remember are that HA should be administered by an experienced rheumatologist or orthopedic surgeon. Either ultrasound or fluroscopy should be used to ensure proper location of the needle and accuracy of HA injection. Contraindications include active infection of the joint or skin near the joint, history of sensitivity to chicken prodcuts (except for Euflexxa), and prior allergic reaction to HA.