Rheumatoid arthritis is a multi system, inflammatory autoimmune disorder that precipitates an attack experienced by the joints. It is a very crippling and painful condition that can lead to loss of mobility, pain and joint devastation.
Rheumatoid arthritis is systemic and also will affect different tissues through the body, skin, blood vessels, lungs, heart and muscles. Rheumatoid arthritis will affect anyone between the ages of 20 and 40 and can start anytime.
A family history is important to the risk. It is 3 times more common in women than in men and up to four times more frequentcommon in smokers than non-smokers.
The symptoms will separate rheumatoid arthritis from other types of arthritis because of the inflammation and soft tissue swelling of many joints at the same time. This is known as polyarthritis. The joints are usually affected asymmetrically and then will go on to the symmetrical part as the disease goes on. It is not like the other forms of arthritis like osteoarthrits because the pain will move with the use of the joints that are affected.
As the disease progresses, the inflammatory activity will lead to the erosion of the joints which will impair their range of movement and lead to some deformity. The fingers and the bones will deviate to the outside and towards the small finger and take on unnatural shapes. Deformities will include the Boutonnire deformity, the swan neck deformity, and the "Z-thumb" deformity.
Because rheumatoid arthritis is a multisystem disease, other disease and conditions may form as a result of it. Many of the people that have rheumatoid arthritis also have anemia. Anemia is a problem of the red blood cells because there are not enough of them and or hemoglobin and this will cause a reduced ability for oxygen to be transported to the tissues.
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic disease and many will suffer from it and splenomegaly or the enlarging of the spleen. Fibrosis may occur in the lungs as a result of different treatments.
There are several markers for diagnosing rheumatoid arthritis. Morning joint stiffness is an example as is soft tissue swelling of more than 3 out of 14 joints or in the joint groups. Arthritis of hand joints like symmetric arthritis, subcutaneous nodules in specific places, a rheumatoid factor at a level above the 95th place and radiological changes that are suggestive of joint erosion are part of the criteria. At least four items on this list have to be met in order to establish a diagnosis.
Treatments rely on disease modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDS), anti inflammatory agents and analgesics. DMARDS is known to start durable remissions and delay the disease process, prevent bone and joint damage as well. Some have found help from natural arthritis remedies.
Anti inflammatory agents and analgesics can help to improve pain and stiffness but do not stop any damage or slow down the disease in any way.
Rheumatoid Arthritis Natural Remedies
Bacteria, viruses, pathogens, yeast that you ingest or that is already in your body
Air pollution from cars or from your work environment
Un-natural food that you eat that is processed or irradiated
Food additives such as dyes, colorings, preservatives, enhancers, gases, sugar
Contaminants in your water such as fluoride, chloride and other substances
Stress from your work and home life
This small list gives you an idea of the many chemicals and emotional sources that can lead to infections in the body and result in arthritis. You can see that all of these sources are part of your regular diet and lifestyle. Now if you couple this with a weak immune system, you set the stage for some serious arthritis conditions. A weak immune system can not control and eliminate these infections so these infections can turn into serious inflammations.
Because of toxins and infections, there are very few people that will escape developing arthritis in their life time.
But for those of you that are health conscious and look to prevent various illnesses, here are some arthritis treatments and arthritis preventive measures.
Arthritis Treatment
The first step you need to take is to take daily antioxidants. You get antioxidants in the deep dark red, blue, black berries and other fruits. Pomegranate juice is one of the most powerful antioxidant juices and provides arthritis protection. Recently I have been using Purity Products Super Reds and New Vitality's Ruby Reds Powder. I put one scoop of powder in some apple juice or other juice and add a dropper full of green tree extract. This gives me a high dose of antioxidants to fight off the heavy dose of free radicals that I consume from the air, food, and thought. Remember free radicals attack tissue causing infections and inflammation in every part of your body.
These powders great taste and are good for the kids in the morning.
So now, if you add juicing to your morning habit, you will be adding high levels of antioxidants and in addition many minerals and vitamins that buildup your immune system. Use pineapple, alfalfa sprouts, and cantaloupe, apricot, cabbage, and cucumber juices. And, you can add a bit of ginger juice to gives you anti-inflammatory protection.
In a recent article, I wrote about Lion's Mane. Here you have a powerful immune system enhancer. It contains 3 Chinese mushrooms - Lion's Mane, Maitake, Reishi -that will buildup your immune system and in addition improve your memory. I have been using this for only a week and I can sense a slight improvement in my memory and how quickly words come into my thought as I express myself. Build up your immune system and this is a powerful arthritis treatment. You body will be able to fight of toxic matter and at the same time protect your joints from infection and inflammation.
This is just a start in dealing with pain and inflammation wherever it maybe in your body - in your joints, organs, or tissues. Use antioxidants and red powders to prevent inflammation. Use juices to give you minerals and vitamins to help improve your immune system. And then give yourself a powerful immune stimulator by take Lion's Mane. Now you have an arthritis treatment that can start protecting your joints and other parts of your body from arthritic infection and inflammation.
Both Garth Hopewell & are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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