Natural Approach to Rheumatoid Arthritis

There is a Natural Approach to Rheumatoid Arthritis. Read on to compare the conventional medical and natural approaches to rheumatoid arthritis.

(Demographics for this article and statistics about rheumatoid arthritis for this article are taken from rheumatoidarthritis.org.)

Demographics

Rheumatoid arthritis affects women more than men, 3:1, 30 to 60 years of age. It is more likely if you have a family member who already has arthritis.

Symptoms

Common symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are symmetrical joint pain, fatigue, malaise, fever, and joint destruction.

Allopathic (conventional medical) Diagnosis

Conventional medical diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis is based on three main factors: lab tests (including positive rheumatoid factor, positive CCP, positive erythrocyte sedimentation rate, positive C-reactive protein, positive ANA), radiographs showing doing joint destruction, and positive physical diagnostic tests.

Allopathic Treatment

Medical treatment for arthritis generally involves four things:

It involves nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories, corticosteroids, disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, and surgery.

These approaches have side effects to consider:

Side effects of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs include liver damage, heart problems, upset stomach, and kidney damage.

Side effects of corticosteroids are swelling, weight gain, increased blood pressure, mood swings, diabetes, increased infection risk, and osteoporosis.

Disease-modifying antirheumatic drug side effects include liver damage and increased risk for infection.

Side effects of surgery include possible infection, irreversible changes in the body, and even death (rare, but a severe side-effect).

A Natural Approach to Rheumatoid Arthritis

The natural approach to rheumatoid arthritis includes what we call a Triad approach. This means that we address structural issues, biochemical issues, and emotional issues.

We address structural issues with chiropractic, massage, and physiotherapy (including rehabilitation exercises and exercise in general).

Biochemical issues of patients with rheumatoid arthritis include: gastrointestinal issues such as gastrointestinal function and food sensitivities, immune system issues, hormonal issues, and inflammation. For example, we find food sensitivities by blood or saliva tests, elimination diets, and Nutrition Response Testing. In addition, appropriate nutritional testing can be used to assess for the other biochemical imbalances.

We help address emotional issues with patients an effort to decrease stress hormones and inflammation in general. This includes addressing external factors, meaning factors affecting the patient from the outside, as well as internal factors (what we call autosuggestion), stress hormones, lack of exercise, and stress-reduction techniques such as meditation.

Results –

A natural approach to rheumatoid arthritis using a triad approach addresses the three key areas that cause inflammation and joint destruction. Only by addressing these three areas can we get a truly holistic approach to dealing with patients with arthritis. In my own practice, I have seen that patients who deal with rheumatoid arthritis holistically have no side effects and are overall much happier with their care than they are with medical care for rheumatoid arthritis. Typical results are 60-80% improvement over 3-6 months as long as patients continue to adhere to their nutritional programs.