Arthritis
by Donna L. Watkins

I remember my Great Grandmother having crooked fingers, and my Grandmother, and my Mom. I also remember them being 'kinda stiff' but I never thought back to these "memories" until I saw I was beginning to have the same problem.

At age 40 (in 1990), my body decided to manifest symptoms of arthritis - rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. Since I'd already battled many health problems with natural alternatives, that's where I began. I had already seen many, many folks who were using drugs and over-the-counter pain medications that weren't working, so I didn't consider it an option for me. I had also gone the traditional medical journey with various health problems prior to discovering the wonderful uses of herbs, and had heard once too many times the word "incurable" and then an offering of various prescriptions to handle the symptoms.

Symptoms are the body's way of letting you know you have a problem. If you take away the symptom you may be able to forget you have a problem for a period of time, but the drug will not make the problem go away.

My husband tells it like this:

If you're driving down the road and the little red light comes on in the car, you have a few options.

1) You can pull over and look under the hood, see what's wrong and fix it.

2) You can drive to the next telephone and call for Road Service to fix the problem.

3) You can reach over in the glove compartment, take out the small hammer, and knock that light out.

Now.....what kind of situation do you have if you choose option #3?

You no longer have the "symptom," but is the "problem" fixed? No, it is not. You may have masked the symptom (as you do the pain with a drug?) but the problem is still there. You will find that another symptom will appear in a short while....maybe a clunking sound in the case of the car?

Our bodies are much the same. We get "warning lights" and America reaches for a pill to "knock the light out." Then further down the road in life, we get a louder signal and wonder where it came from?

Every drug has side effects. That is well established. If you've never read much about drugs, let's take a look at a brief article about a drug used for arthritis:

"The approved arthritis drug, etanercept (Enbrel), may increase the chance of potentially life-threatening infections in some patients with rheumatoid arthritis, according to a warning issued by FDA. The drug, a genetically engineered protein, was approved for the treatment of moderate to severe, active rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The FDA notes that the drug "can significantly reduce pain and swollen joints in people disabled with RA," but it is also known to suppress tumor necrosis factor, an important infection-fighting protein produced by immune system cells.

Of an estimated 25,000 people given the drug, 30 have developed serious infections and 6 have died. Although people with rheumatoid arthritis are prone to infections, and many of the patients had a history of chronic infections, the deaths occurred within 2 to 16 weeks after starting treatment with Enbrel."

Here's a list of side effects for this drug:

Cardiovascular: heart failure, myocardial infarction, myocardial ischemia, hypertension, hypotension, deep vein thrombosis, thrombophlebitis

Digestive: cholecystitis, pancreatitis, gastrointestinal hemorrhage, appendicitis

Hematologic/Lymphatic: lymphadenopathy

Musculoskeletal: bursitis, polymyositis

Nervous: cerebral ischemia, depression, multiple sclerosis

Respiratory: dyspnea, pulmonary embolism, sarcoidosis

Skin: worsening psoriasis

Urogenital: membranous glomerulonephropathy, kidney calculus

Back to my initial question: Why would I use herbs and supplements for arthritis?

My answer:

At the time of this update (2007), I've been working with my arthritis program naturally for 17 years. Has the arthritis disappeared? No. Has it progressed? Yes.

Being in the health industry for over 25 years and listening to people talk about their health, prescriptions and side effects, I feel I am far better with the choices I have made. I still pray and hope for a remission and healing, but I manage the pain well with the supplements and dietary choices. I believe your spiritual and emotional health is a factor also. If you'd like to learn more about the emotional side of arthritis, read more about a book called A More Excellent Way.

Dietary Issues 

Let's talk about diet. What we eat does affect our health. After all, when God made these bodies, He also made food to keep them running. Altering that food, such as turning whole wheat into white bleached flour is not providing the body with the nutrients that our foods were created to provide. When we use artificial flavors and colorings, the body has to defend itself against the chemicals that weren't meant to be considered food. My body knows the difference between real strawberries and strawberry flavoring and red coloring ... and it processes each very differently.

Excess acidity is known to be associated with arthritis. Read more about the acid/alkaline balance the body needs, but keep in mind that you don't want to make diet your god. Balance is the key. When the body is over-acidic, it doesn't mean that we need to eat only alkaline foods. So when you review the acid/alkaline information, keep in mind that you want to begin making changes towards more alkaline foods. Some try to avoid all acid foods and then shortly thereafter drop the whole idea since it is too big a lifestyle change.

There is also a link to plants of the nightshade family. Dr. Robert Bingham, at the Desert Arthritis and Medical Clinic, says that 1/3 of all patients with RA have allergies to plants of the nightshade family which include: potatoes, peppers, eggplant, tomatoes, and tobacco.

Vegetables are vital. Norwegian research found that switching to a vegetarian diet (also excluding milk and eggs) lessened arthritis pain and other symptoms in 90% of subjects. Researchers credit eliminating meat fat, but also suspect fruits and vegetables having undefined benefits. I've been a vegetarian since the early 80's.

Help for Pets Too!

Before closing, I want to offer hope for those who have pets with arthritis. Herbs and supplements work for animals too. Here's a success story for a dog. It is not the only one we have received. Many pets are able to climb and jump again after hardly being able to walk.

"My aging dog began to have problems with climbing stairs. It was so sad to see her struggle so much. My mom used a product for arthritis that was natural and contained glucosamine. I knew that you could use that with pets also but the product at the vet's office was so expensive. I decided to order Everflex and give it a try. It wasn't long before she was running around again and zipping up and down the stairs. It's like she wanted to do it just for the joy of it. Thank you for such a fine product." T.M. in AZ

Read more about pets and natural alternatives at "Herbs for Pets."

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