Rheumatoid Arthritis, Common Causes And Natural Home Remedies!
Rheumatoid arthritis
Understanding And Identifying the Symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis:
Rheumatoid Arthritis can be a big hindrance to daily activities and patients are often faced with many difficulties. Categorized under the autoimmune type among the seven main arthritis conditions, rheumatoid arthritis is a disorder occurring when the body’s immune system starts to attack itself because of some external trigger.
The most commonly found arthritis condition is osteoarthritis, which affects the joints due to age, trauma or infection. Rheumatoid arthritis is a gradual condition, developing over several months and years. The symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis begin with little joint aches and pains.
In general,
The symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are not uniform, rising up and dying down sporadically. This is known as “flare-ups.”The symptoms can appear day or night, but the swelling and pain are often at their worst during the morning, just after waking. Since you move around during the day or at least try to, and the joints grow less stiffened, the symptoms ease out by the afternoon and often reduce dramatically by nighttime.
When rheumatoid arthritis begins to spread,
- It usually affects other joints, including the jaw, shoulders, elbows, and hips.
- The pain and inflammation often affect joint pairs, such as both elbows or both knees.
- This is a common tendency seeing in patients with the condition.
- The typical symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are joint pain, swelling, and stiffness, often accompanied by a warming sensation and redness around the joints.
A set of symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are referred to as secondary symptoms. These are connected to general health conditions as a response to the pain. These could be loss of appetite, anxiety, stress, depression, anemia, nodules under the skin, and a general feeling of being ill. Over 25% of the patients complain of skin nodules, specifically in the forearms and in the elbows.
Though painless,
They are small lumps that can be felt and sometimes seen as bumps on the skin. Anemia is a condition of inadequate red blood cells to carry oxygen to the whole body, and it leads to fatigue and laziness. This is found in over 80% of the patients.
There are,
Instances of all symptoms combining to lead to weight loss and fever in patients with severe rheumatoid arthritis. It does not end with just these, it also leads to an inability to sleep, constant discomfort due to pain and weakness. This leads to a feeling of illness worse than before. Other symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis include swelling of blood vessels, glands like the tear and salivary glands, and inflammation of the lining of the heart and lungs.
The symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis point to a series of risk factors like
Age, gender, genetic history and harmful habits like smoking. Women in the 40-60 age group are at a higher risk. Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis is rare but not unheard of. This condition is generally not hereditary, but dormant genes can flare up with certain triggers.
The Common Causes of Rheumatoid Arthritis:
Rheumatoid arthritis can be caused by a number of factors. While it is rather hard to even for the doctors to tell their patients what actually makes them contract the disease. The Most Common of All Factors are Listed Below:
I. Viruses, Fungi, and Bacteria:
These elements have long been suspected to be the root causes of rheumatoid arthritis. But then again, it hasn’t been proven that they alone are sufficient to cause the disease. What is certain is that viruses, fungi, and bacteria play a certain role in the development of the disease, as they trigger the body’s immune system to act. Therefore, it can not be ruled out that these infectious agents may have something to do with rheumatoid arthritis.
II. Genetics:
There are also studies showing that rheumatoid arthritis can be inherited. There have been worldwide researches performed to seek the main cause of this disease. And with that many types of research conducted, all of the experts behind them can’t rule genetics as a factor.
In a certain group of patients who suffer from rheumatoid arthritis, it was found out that a number of them have family members who are suffering from the disease in one way or another. This had caused scientists to assume that certain types of rheumatoid arthritis can be transferred genetically.
III. Allergens:
Because rheumatoid arthritis involves the immune system, it is reasonable to assume that certain allergens cause the antibodies to attack the joints. Allergens fall under the environmental factors that could trigger the disease. These could be the food you eat, exposure to certain types of bacteria in the air, and the deficiency of certain types of vitamins in the body.
Therefore,
It is important that a series of consultations with a health expert is carried out so that it becomes easy for them to determine what triggers a particular rheumatoid arthritis attack. Defining one’s allergen is very helpful in preventing the disease.
IV. Changes in One’s Hormones:
One other cause of rheumatoid arthritis would be the changes in one’s hormones. For the females, it was found out that during pregnancy, their levels of progesterone and estrogen becomes relatively high. However, after giving birth, it drastically decreases. This is one of the reasons why rheumatoid arthritis often happens in a woman after childbirth.
On the Other side, some mothers have experienced improved rheumatoid arthritis condition during the entire length of their pregnancy. But after the time the baby is born, they experience a certain degree of a flare-up.
V. Smoking:
There have been relevant studies that show smoking tobacco can increase a person’s risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis, now or at any time in the future. On the other hand, for those people who already have rheumatoid arthritis and still continue to smoke, their chances of having an attack are higher than those who don’t. There are certain substances found inside tobacco that triggers the attack.
These Are,
- The different and most common causes of rheumatoid arthritis. Knowing the main root of the disease is going to be very helpful in preventing its occurrence altogether.
- And if the main cause of rheumatoid arthritis is defined, the very people who are suffering from it may act accordingly to make sure they keep away from the very things that cause the disease.
- Doing so will spare them of the intense pain, swelling, and stiffness in the joint and muscle that can be affected by the disease.
Psychological Management of Arthritis:
Managing Your Mind as The First Treatment of Arthritis, People who suffer from arthritis tend to be affected as much psychologically, as they are affected physiologically.
Restriction of movements where there was freedom of movement earlier means that it is not just the joint that is affected, but also the mind that tends to be disappointed, frustrated and depressed. However, the first thing that people affected with arthritis need to know is that all is not lost.
To Be Sure,
There may not have been a permanent cure for arthritis that has been discovered by science yet – the worst cases have involved joint replacement surgeries, which do have a high success rate. However, surgery could be left as the last resort, as we hope for further advancements in science to bless the people whose joints may have been affected.
But,
Assured that they are not alone. Arthritis is a very common condition that occurs with age, due to stress, impacts on joints or due to any number of conditions, and which is being managed effectively through proper care and treatment.
Optimism And Motivation:
The first home remedy for arthritis would be optimism and motivation to manage the condition. If you have arthritis, face the condition, accept the reality, and move one with the assurance that arthritis is being managed by many thousands of people around the world, and the society is much more supportive of people suffering from arthritis.
When you decide to fight the condition and manage the disorder, the battle against arthritis is half-won already.
Here are Best Natural Home Remedies for Rheumatoid Arthritis:
1. Weight Management:
It is important for arthritis patients to work towards weight loss.
- You should check out the best weight loss program that may suit your needs and conditions.
- When you reduce weight, the pressure on your joints is reduced by that much and with reduced pressures on joints comes less stress that your joints would have to take.
- Especially when arthritis that you suffer from is that of your knees.
- The knees take the maximum brunt of pressure as a result of body weight, and weight reduction is an important natural remedy for arthritis.
The Catch,
In weight management is that people who suffer from arthritis to their knees would find it difficult to walk, and walking would be suggested as one of the most important activities of your weight reduction program.
However, as has already been mentioned, it is a determination that makes the difference to your condition, not your disease. Do not be deterred by your condition and look for other ways and means that would keep you occupied with exercises and diet, helping you in managing your weight.
2. Camphor Oil:
Painful swellings and inflammations respond to heat and massages. And when you use the right oil for your massage, your joints will feel the relief.
- You could use commonly available camphor oil and mix it with coconut oil as a natural home remedy for arthritis.
- Warm up the mix to form gentle aromatic massage oil.
- Use liberal quantities of the oils to give warm massage to the affected areas regularly, preferably before you go to bed, as a treatment for arthritis.
3. Hot Salt Massage:
This one is a simple home remedy for arthritis.
- You need to take a handful of rock salt and heat it up till it gets as warm as you can possibly bear.
- Wrap up the hot rock salt in a clean piece of cloth.
- It should be so hot that you could place it in your knees, but not for a very long duration.
Salt is,
generally used as an anti-skeptic in many conditions, and it would come in handy towards alleviating pain in the case of inflammation of joints as well, proving to be a useful home remedy for arthritis. Keep pressing the warm piece of cloth around the swollen and painful joints to have instant relief from pain and inflammation.
4. Bathing in The Sea:
It is on account of the anti-skeptic properties of salt that it is often suggested that bathing in seawater is an effective natural remedy for arthritis. Water in itself has healing power; when you have pain in your legs, if you can manage a walk along the river or in the seashore, as you wade through the rift of water or through the waves for a few minutes, you would find instant relief to your pain.
In The Case of Arthritis,
You could spend some time in the sea so that the affected areas are caressed by the gentle rocking movements of the sea waves laden with healthy salt, which could act as a natural remedy for arthritis. Of course, if you would rather have your self-management of arthritis done at home, you could always resort to a mix of warm camphor oil massage, followed by another dose of heated rock salt massage as a home remedy for arthritis.
5. Castor Oil:
- This highly viscous oil is an ideal home remedy for arthritis.
- Apart from the host of uses that this gives, castor oil could also be used for warm massages of the affected areas in arthritis.
- Adequately heated castor oil should be applied gently on affected joints and massaged, for an effective home remedy for arthritis.
6. Water Enriched With Potato:
While you could deal with the inflammation externally, it is also important to have your arthritis treated internally, for which, you do not have to reach out any farther than your nearest departmental store.
- Go for fresh potatoes.
- Cut them into slices without peeling off the skin. And soak it in water.
- If you can leave this overnight, the goodness of potatoes would have seeped into the water, in the form of beta-carotene and polyphenols.
These are anti-inflammatory and are effective anti-oxidants, which, when taken internally, would act as effective deterrents of pain and inflammation, and as useful home remedies for arthritis. Do make it a point to couple this treatment with external massages.
7. Garlic:
Besides being used as a flavoring agent in food, garlic has been in use for treating arthritis, since time immemorial for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Rich in selenium, it serves as a precursor for selenoproteins, which are potent antioxidant enzymes and its sulfur content reduces the inflammation of joints.
It is particularly beneficial to treat osteoarthritis since sulfur also serves as a raw material for the production of collagen required for the repair of cartilage, a tissue that protects the joints from excessive damage.
8. Flaxseed Oil:
Flaxseed oil is known to relieve chronic pain associated with arthritis, through the presence of anti-inflammatory agents like alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), a compound related to omega-3 fatty acids and powerful antioxidants called lignans that flush out free radicals responsible for causing inflammation in the joints.
It is Not,
- Suitable for cooking,
- Frying or baking since heat can distort the molecular structure of flaxseed oil,
- Rendering it less effective in treating arthritis.
- One to two tablespoons of flaxseed oil can,
- However, be added to smoothies made using fresh fruits or as toppings on breakfast cereals, salad dressings, oatmeal, pancakes, etc.
Patients with bleeding disorders or those who are taking anticoagulants should use very little amounts of flaxseed oil, since the omega-3 fatty acids that it contains can enhance the thinning of the blood thus, leading to excessive bleeding.
9. Turmeric Powder:
Turmeric is definitely the wonder drug that could have a deep impact on our overall health, with immense properties that come in handy in a variety of ailments. Turmeric comes to the fore when it comes to arthritis too, as you could get some turmeric powder mixed in warm water to be drunk regularly to be effective pain relief.
Turmeric,
has long been known in Indian and Chinese traditional systems of medicine as a power anti-inflammatory agent, which could prove beneficial in the treatment and management of arthritis. You could also make a paste of turmeric powder with coconut oil and apply the mixture on the affected areas, on the skin along the affected joints, for effective pain relief and as a useful home remedy for arthritis.
10. Ginger:
Turmeric, as you just saw, is an anti-inflammatory agent that would come in handy in arthritis and related pain. In a similar vein,
- Ginger is also a very powerful anti-inflammatory agent on account of its anti-inflammatory compound called gingerol.
- Regular consumption of ginger and the addition of ginger powder to food and drinks is a good way to promote an active intake of the anti-inflammatory agent.
11. Heat And Cold Therapy:
The application of either heat or ice to the affected area depends on the type of arthritis, a patient is suffering from. Heat dilates blood vessels, thereby stimulating blood circulation and reducing muscle spasms and stiffness in the joints of patients suffering from osteoarthritis.
Application of dry heat like hot water bags, heating pads and moist heat like steam or warm baths can also alter the sensation of joint pain.
On The Other Hand,
- Ice causes the constriction of blood vessels and hence, can be used to treat swelling and inflammation that results from an injury accompanied by the leakage of blood from ruptured capillaries.
- This makes ice suitable for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, which is accompanied by inflammation, soreness, pain, burning sensation and swelling in the joint lining.
12. Foods to Avoid in Arthritis:
Just like there is a list of foods and nutrients that are essential, you would benefit if you avoid consuming certain foods to prevent the conditions from deteriorating, as you try promoting joint health using home remedies for arthritis.
You Might Want to Look Into,
fats and fried food consumption patterns, to begin with. While they may not have much to do with arthritis as such in a direct sense,
- They play a vital role in arthritis management through body weight.
- the more fatty, fried and junk food you consume, the more your chances are of putting on additional weight.
- which might be detrimental to arthritis management and might come in the way of home remedies for arthritis.
Gluten,
is one more food substance that you would be better off avoiding. Since gluten, found in wheat products, is known to trigger some kind of inflammatory response to the immune system. Which might not be good for people suffering from rheumatoid arthritis.
And Milk Products,
- Might also not be in line with home remedies for arthritis.
- Though it might be advisable to avoid dairy products for a week or two to see the kind of response that it produces.
- Before taking a decision to complete the avoidance of dairy products.
Summing Up:
While rheumatoid arthritis is more severe than osteoarthritis, it is considerably rarer and usually can be successfully controlled when symptoms are brought to the doctor’s attention promptly. It may take some time and patience to arrive at the right medication in the proper dosage, but the combination of drugs, exercise, rest and good nutrition can usually reduce symptoms to the point where they do not interfere with most normal activities.
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Disclaimer: “Nothing in this article makes any claim to offer cures or treatment of any disease or illness. If you are sick please consult with your doctor.”
