More common than heart disease, cancer, and diabetes arthritis is the leading cause of disability in this country. Today there are promising new drugs that can help.
It starts as a little stiffness or soreness in a joint, and usually disappears by mid-morning. Before long, though, the joint becomes painful, a bit swollen, and maybe even feels warm to the touch. Everyday chores become challenges; aspirin helps, but not for long, and it also exacerbates ulcers and irritates your stomach lining. The doctor looks over your symptoms and concludes that you have osteoarthritis, lust like more than 20 million other Americans, and there are treatments, but no cure.
Conventional medicine views arthritis as incurable but manageable. Most treatment programs include a combination of medication, exercise, rest, use of heat and cold, joint protection techniques and sometimes surgery. Physicians commonly prescribe nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), which can put a swift stop to arthritis pain but also upset stomachs, even causing ulcers. Another tack is corticosteroid injections to reduce inflammation, but these also bear serious side effects.
Today, the most commonly prescribed remedies for osteoarthritis are pain relievers such as aspirin, and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). But these products have side effects, including serious stomach distress; and some can even speed up damage to the cartilage, making the condition worse. Even the new breed of NSAIDs known as COX-2 inhibitors, designed to minimize the side effects of traditional NSAIDs, have not measured up to their billing. Diarrhea, bleeding, cramps and skin rashes are a few of the side effects associated with these drugs. In addition, since they are new, no one really knows what the consequences of long-term usage of the COX-2 inhibitors might be.
Nearly half (44.6%) of the study population was of Hispanic ethnicity, 71.4% were women, and 65.0% had annual incomes of less than $25,000. Most (90.2%) had ever used CAM for arthritis, and 69.2% were using CAM at the time of the interview. Current use was highest for oral supplements (mainly glucosamine and chondroitin) (34.1%), mind-body therapies (29.0%), and herbal topical ointments (25.1%). Fewer participants made current use of vitamins and minerals (16.6%), herbs taken orally (13.6%), a CAM therapist (12.7%), CAM movement therapies (10.6%), special diets (10.1%), or
copper jewelry or magnets (9.2%).
http://www.herbmark.com/Store.asp?filename=bones_joints_support
