Times-Advocate, 1986-11-05, Page 38Keys to Art
By Frances Sheridan GooIan
Huning? Nothing does it
better than arthritis.
According to the
Arthritis Foundation of
America, 30 million of
us already have it, and
by the year 2000, 10 million
more will be in the clutches of
the nation's No. 1 crippling
disease. Although osteoarthritis
and rheumatism are the
commonest forms of arthritis,
there are actually 100 forms of
this disorder.
Just what is it that's out of
order besides your elbows,
knees, hands and feet? Plenty.
Arthritis, in fact encompasses
the entire organism. But even if
it were just a joint that was
jumping, that would be enough.
The joint, after all, is the crucial
junction between two out of
your body's 200 bones.
According to Dr. Colin
Wilson, former professor of
medicine and director of
rheumatology and immunology
at Emory University School of
Medicine, arthritis sufferers can
produce dramatic improvements
without drugs. "There's a myth
that arthritis pain is something a
person must live with. In most
cases the average patient can
live a pain-free, normal,
productive life," says Dr.
Wilson. In fact, it may even be
possible to put u with pain hind
lesion ii tdf a less aspirin if
your arthritis smarts.
Help is definitely on the way
if you know where to look. 1t is
estimated, for example,
according to Dr. Alfonse Masi,
professor of medicine and head
of the department at the
University of Illinois College of
Medicine in Peoria, that 75 to
90 percent of all sufferers could
be helped by the right treatment
or drug.
Is that as easily done as said?
Yes and no. No, if you opt for
drugs like cortisone and codeine
and worse. Yes, if you consider
a few alternatives:
1. Hypnosis: Can•you think
yourself symptom-free? Trance
therapy can help if you think
you can. At least Dr. Charles
Mutter, assistant professor of
psychiatry at the Universii of
Miami School of Medicine in
Florida thinks it can. Not only is
hypnosis an effective anesthetic,
but it's used in the rehabilitation
of stroke victims and for "all
forms of chronic pain: migraine
headaches, back pain, arthritis
and chest pain."
It's also enormously beneficial
in treating problems which have
underlying emotional causes.
And since hypnosis can improve
a person's mental attitude, it
seems to also enable the person
to greatly accelerate healing, no
matter what it is that's
Trto the body."
ak ng pains to raise your
pain threshold? Don't forget the
pecan. According to medical
nutritionist Dr. John Ellis,
remarkable improvements have
been observed in arthritics who
snack on large amounts of these
nuts. Nutty as it sounds, says
Dr. Ellis, analysts conclude it's
the megadoses of vitamin B6
and potassium they contain.
�. Cope; don't mope. "Recent
research has shown that positive
thinking can help to raise
endorphin levels," says Dr.
Charles Denko, associate clinical
professor of rheumatology at
Case -Western Reserve
University in Cleveland, Ohio.
The body's natural painkillers,
`called endorphins, can be
produced by cells in the joints.
This discovery could lead to the
development of endorphin
medications and techniques of
mind control to stimulate better
endorphin production for arthritis
patients, he says.
"People with a positive
outlook cope with their disease
better and experience less pain."
Dr. Denko believes the best way
to develop a positive attitude
about arthritis is to get as much
information about the disease as
possible from your doctor. He
adds, "Knowing what you're up
against takes away a lot of the
fear and mystery surrounding the
disease.' That allows you to cope
in a calm and positive way."
4. Less stress, more vitamin
C. What' can stress do to start or
perpetuate the agonies of
arthritis? The question may
better be, what can it undo? And
the answer is almost everything.
Stress costs.
"Mental conditions so affect
the body, chemistry that there is
a wide fluctuation of calcium
phosphorus levels. During times
of depression, aches and pains
from worry develop," says Dr.
Melvin E. Page of the Page
Institute in St. Petersburg, Fla.
"Once the metabolism is
corrected, the arthritic symptoms
are less pronounced."
And according to
rheumatologist Dr. Robert
Rinehart, clinical professor of
medicine at the University of
Oregon, "Tension causes
fatigue. Fatigue produces
cramping in the muscles that
work the joints, and that causes
inflammation, arthritis. What
you strive so hard for in your
mind carries over to your
body."
And nothing frees the system
of stress, says Dr. W.C.
McCormick. like ascorbic acid.
"in a deficiency of vitamin C,
there is the breakdown of
intercellular cement substance,
resulting in easy rupture of any
and all of these connective
tissues including the discs of the
backbone, the ligaments and
small sacs in the interior of the
joints and the cartilage which
helps in the movement of joints.
The sensitivity of these joints
may be, then, the common cause
for arthritic illness." Giving
massive amounts of vitamin C to
his closely supervised arthritic
patients resulted in rapid and
complete recovery in three or
four weeks.
5. Anti -ache tea: What's good
for kidney stones and urinary
infections is often just the mild
diuretic ticket for arthritis
problems. Favorites at European
spas include pokeroot, alfalfa,
arnica, birch leaves, burdock,
comfrey, horseradish,
pennyroyal, St. Johnswort,
sassafras, strawberry leaves and
watercress (available at your
local health food store).
For tea: Soak two teaspoons
dried root stock overnight in one
cup cold water. Strain and drink
one to two cups a day. Or, steep
three teaspoons fresh or dried
leaves in two cups hot water for
10 minutes, strain and sip
throughout the day.
Any combination of the above
herbs can be dissolved in pure
vegetable oil and used as a
liniment. Hot baths using these
herbs help. So do chopped
steamed greens such as cress,
chard and cabbage used as heat
packs to reduce inflammation
and pain.
RECOMMENDED READING
Pain -Free Arthritis, by Dvera
Berson. Available through S&J
Books, P.O. Box 31, Gravesend
Station, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11223.
S15.95, including postage and
handling.
We Are Not Alone: learning
to live With Chronk Illness, by
Sefra Kobrin Pitzele. Available
through Thompson & Company,
Inc., 1313 5th St. SE, Suite
301, Minneapolis, Minn. 55414.
$14.95 plus shipping and
handling.
Exerclse Designed for die
Aging, by F.D. Meyer.
Available through local general
nutrition stores for $15 95.
Understand Your Backache, by
Rene Caillet, M.D. Available
through F.A. Davis Company,
1915 Arch Street, Philadelphia,
Pa. 19103. $10.95, including
postage and handling.
A Guide for the Disabled
Traveler, by Frances Barish,
Available through Frommer,
Pastmantier Publishers, 1230
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York, N.Y. 10020. $10.95 plus
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