Reversing/preventing arthritis

[pinenut]

About ten years ago I broke 2 vertebrea (T11 & T12) and severely injuredt the pedical bones and disk in my neck from C3-C6. A recent MRI revealed that I have the beginning stages of arthritis in EVERY vertebrea in my backbone from neck to tail bone, as well as in my knees and big toe joints. Rhumitoid arthritis runs in my family and I know I'm destined for this aweful disease. However, I'm only 38 and refuse to allow this affliction to ruin my future potential.

Has anyone here had any real reversal and help with arthritis from being 100% raw? I know how healing raw can be, especially for things like allergies and even cancer, but what about arthritis? Can someone please tell me if they've had a truely positive reversal of arthris on raw? I would really love to hear any and all stories from anyone out there afflicted with this disease. I don't want to depend on our so called "medical community" to try to help me. All they want to do is feed toxic medication with lethal side affects to me. I want a real permanent healthy solution.

Any and all feedback is welcome and much appreciated. :)

[Arky]

Bernard Jensen always remarked upon the importance of organic sodium in the diet for keeping healthy skeletal function. Celery etc.

Joseph Pizzorno relates, on p.91 of his book 'Total Wellness', the case of a woman cured of her juvenile rheumatoid arthritis by a naturopath who simply helped her detoxify her liver. Elsewhere in this book, Pizzorno also goes into detail about how systemic inflammation is often very much associated with rheumatoid arthritis, and may be associated with leaky gut etc., as these all interrelate with inflammatory processes of the immune system (as, indeed, can heavy metal intoxication, which I happen to know about from personal experience).

As a starting point, I recommend you take a look at Pizzorno's book and also consider investigating various possible causes of systemic inflammation in your body. There are many possible environmental sources of toxic exposure, for example, some capable of stressing the liver, gut and immune system. If it turns out you do have some gut issues, then you may find the work of Natasha Campbell-McBride to be useful, though her dietary path may differ from your own. I also recommend you obtain Richard Schulze's classic 'Save Your Life' video/DVD series. It's well worth the effort to find it. You may have to hunt for it on the internet, and may be able to obtain it via Sam Biser or perhaps elsewhere - just use your initiative and you definitely will find it.

Also, consider deliberately including plenty of anti-inflammatory foods in your diet. These include those rich in vitamins C and E, and ginger/turmeric, etc. However, in terms of the herbs and spices, I'd personally err on the side of caution and not use these too much until after investigating potential sources of toxic exposure, since herbs and spices can have many interactions with the human nervous system which are not yet fully understood by science and there is a degree of potential for one or more of these interactions to prove problematic if certain toxins are present in the body. I realise that might sound a little weird, but cilantro, for example, is one that very nearly caused me a great deal of harm, owing to my case of heavy metals intoxication.

Omega 3s are anti-inflammatory, in moderation, but shouldn't be consumed excessively because they can become pro-inflammatory if there are toxins present within the body (or insufficient anti-oxidant levels within the body), because the relatively long-chain molecular structure of omega 3s renders them vulnerable to oxidation/rancidity. This is a vegan board, but I will just point out that this rancidity issue is one reason why supplementation with fish oil capsules may not yield positive results in clinical trials. Unsurprisingly, the same goes for polyunsaturated Omega 6 fats, though these are inherently more promotive of inflammation than Omega 3s, owing to which prostaglandins they promote the synthesis of within the body.



Above all else, you would be very wise to seriously investigate if there is some form of toxic exposure in your life, and this may be relevant to other members of your family. Far too often, these days, when several members of a family suffer from the same, or similar, health issues, the finger is pointed at genetics as the probable cause. Whilst I do not rule out genetics as a potential contributory factor, it is naive for one to jump too readily to blame genetics. I don't know how serious you are about understanding possible contributory factors to your condition, or how you are fixed, financially, but I would urge you to contact a practitioner skilled in environmental medicine as such a practitioner may prove very insightful in investigating your case. For your part, you will need to keep a very detailed daily diary of your symptoms, along with noting any foods which appear, subjectively, to exacerbate your condition. When I say symptoms, I don't just mean relating to the RA, but relating to any bodily symptoms you experience. I'm always mindful, when suggesting this to people, to point out that the point of keeping such a diary is absolutely not to promote the person becoming a hypochondriac, fearful of every little symptom! ;-) It's simply to gently but consistently build up a detailed picture which may be incomprehensible to oneself but which may provide extremely valuable clues to a skilled practitioner, experienced in the links which may occur between the function (or dysfunction) of one or more areas of the body, in the presence of a toxic influence (I learned about this, for myself, on the HM side of things).


In short, it's wise to investigate potential causes of systemic inflammation, and additionally to include plenty of natural anti-inflammatory foods in your diet, primarily from ordinary natural foods rather than too many herbs or spices, until you've made some inroads into investigating potential sources of toxic exposure.

If you do consider any supplementation at all, look into the possibility of astaxanthin as it is a natural xanthophyll carotenoid with powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory abilities. It is your responsibility to research any such supplementation prior to trying it, though.

Boswellic acid (frankincense) is a very powerful anti-inflammatory, too, but, as with cilantro, I would steer clear of this until you've ruled out heavy metal intoxication, since I had an unpleasant experience with it.

I wish you the best of health, and please remember the important contribution a healthy state of mind can play in any health condition. I used to downplay the importance of that, but have more and more come to appreciate how significant it can be, on many levels.

[DebB]

Since starting my detox and herbal journey 13 months ago - - all I have to do is "cheat" and eat junk food and the pain & stiffness comes back into my hands.

I highly recommend this Naturopath - and he's nearby in Port Charlotte. I've been a client of his for over a year. He also has a YouTube channel.

[pinenut]

WOW Thanks so much for this info. It is greatly appreciated and will be utilizied thoroughly. I do know that in addition to RA, I also carry the gene for Systemic Lupis from my father. I've yet to find out if I actually have Lupis, but haven't been tested for it yet. I'm wondering how much this possiblity is also playing into my issues?? And Deb, thanks so much for the reference. I'll definitly check him out. I've got a lot of research ahead of me...

[Arky]

It might also be beneficial for you to try avoiding grains. Not for reasons of dogma, just simply for the reason that in a fair proportion of people with autoimmune or systemic inflammatory issues, grains can tend to be a trigger that aggravates the immune system further.

Dairy is also a possible trigger, for some people.

Everyone is unique to some degree, so the above may or may not apply to you, but they should certainly be considered as part of your investigations.

A decent qualified practitioner may do some basic blood tests for immune markers to see if they display any obvious immune concerns. e.g. high levels of C-Reactive Protein (CRP).

[pinenut]

Grains as in all "grasses": oats, wheat, rice, etc? Or just a gluten intolerance? I know a friend here at work who, while not having been tested for gluten intolerance voluntarily gave up gluten and claimed he felt soooo much better within just a week or so. I have a good internal medcine doctor, but unfortunatley she's out for 3 months on maternaty leave and I'm not fond of her replacement. She's much more homeopathic and not quick to prescribe medication. She helped me tremendously so far by discovering that a previous doctor (while trying to be helpful) prescribed that I take iron twice a day because I was diagnosed with anemia. However my new doctor discovered that I do not have "true" anemia, I have another much more rare type call Thallasemia and the iron I was prescribed was building up leathally in my system and was starting to cause congestive heart failure!! So, unfortunatly I'll have to wait until she returns before I can get the prescribed tests (insurance won't cover them from another doctor because I listed her as my primary care physician). But I guess it would be wise to get started "weeding out" some possibly offending foods and see how I start to feel. I will be so happy just to not feel tired and beat down all the time. I've started eliminating some obvious offensive foods this week and have already started feeling a bit better with each passing day. I just fear what will happen 10-20 years from now, if I don't do something now to prevent what I can already see coming.

[pinenut]

Well, this is day three of clearing the garbage out of my diet and getting myself moving. I'm already starting to feel better. I feel healthier and happier each day. I've had a long run of health issues, not to mention the issues from my original post, that I've been dealing with. I've gotten off all medication except the absolute smallest dosage of a thyroid medication that, so far, I've only felt good since being using. So I'm going to stick with that. I am however supplamenting with dried sea vegetables to increase my iodide and hopefully level out my thyroid issues. I've also eliminated all foods containing artificial crap (unfortunatly my dear boyfriend got me hooked on drinking diet sodas ever since I've moved in with him) I've cut all the artificial sweetners, processed sugar and white flour out of my diet. I'm upping my raw foods as my budget allows and otherwise basically sticking to the cleanest foods we currently have in the house. Money is exceedingly tight so we have to make due with a lot of frozen veggies and things a bit more affordable at the moment. I'm planning on incorporating more and more fresh raw fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds as I can afford to buy them. The cost of fresh stuff is out of my price range and our local farmer's markets aren't exactly plentiful in this area. (Unless I want to live on oranges and tomatoes that have no taste because they are grown in sand!!)

But I have a plan now at least. And believe me this is only the beginning. If I can prevent my body from degrading any more than it already has and do whatever it takes to reverse any degeneration trends that have started I intend on doing it.!

[sport]

I have reversed my arthritis during the past 3 years since starting to do The Five Tibetan Rites every day. If I stop doing it the stiffness comes back after about a week.

[Arky]

I do know that in addition to RA, I also carry the gene for Systemic Lupis from my father. I've yet to find out if I actually have Lupis, but haven't been tested for it yet. I'm wondering how much this possiblity is also playing into my issues??

Be sure to absolutely avoid alfalfa sprouts due to the canavanine content (which is a definite no-no for SL).