More autoimmune sufferers, but specifically rheumatoid arthritis sufferers are looking for natural alternatives to a bevy of hardcore drugs that don’t seem to be working – prednisolone, plaquenil, methotrexate and more.

Alice at 43, could barely get out of the car to see me. She was on Plaquenil for your swollen, aching joints (ankle, knees, finger, hips….) and it wasn’t working. Methotrexate, a chemotherapy drug was the next option. Alice was keen to try other options before she went there, googling the side effects had shaken her. She was trying to look after her two young boys and keep her part time receptionist job.

Was there a safer, kinder and easier way of addressing her faulty immune system that was attacking her joints?

Three weeks after seeing me Alice’s inflammatory markers had halved and three months later she was reporting 2/10 on pain scale with no flare ups. Life was good, much easier with less pain. Alice was also feeling the benefits of what we were doing in all areas of her life. Her energy had tripled, she was sleeping better, her brain fog had cleared and wasn’t constipated or bloated anymore. Alice had  started her daily swims at the local beach again. Now that brought a huge smile to her face. She was living again, not just getting by.

Autoimmune diseases are fast becoming one of the main reasons people come to see me and one of the fastest growing chronic diseases in Australia. Rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, thrombocytopenia, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, Grave’s disease, eczema, Crohn’s disease, Ulcerative colitis, Psoriasis, Coeliac…..the list keeps growing.

Did you know your gut is roughly 70% of your immune system? Makes sense to target your gut microbiome and digestive system to find drivers for autoimmune diseases. Food intolerances, gut infections, leaky gut, faulty digestion, nutrient deficiencies, poor diet, constipation could all be stoking the fire of your autoimmune dysfunction.

Dr Scher recently said “In 10 or 15 years I think the microbiome will be a key therapeutic option for some of these diseases. There will be challenges, but I don’t see why it can’t happen. This isn’t science fiction.” 

What’s rheumatoid arthritis?

Rheumatoid arthritis is not your grandmother’s arthritis from wear and tear. It attacks any age from kids to elderly. Mainly affecting women aged 30 to 50.

Rheumatoid arthritis is where your immune system becomes faulty and attacks your joints, connective soft tissue and organs, in waves or flares, where your joints become inflamed and distorted over time, causing crippling and reduced mobility of joints. Once joints are damaged there is management only. Typically shortening life span by 10-15 years.

A flare can mean you can’t get out of bed, can’t brush or teeth or shower or struggle to go to the toilet. So, reducing the length, intensity or occurrence of the flares is the aim of the game.

In real terms this means, giving up favourite hobbies and activities. Debilitating fatigue and chronic draining pain can make it difficult to keep up socially with friends and family.

Many have suffered several years with symptoms and illnesses which doctors didn’t string together as being autoimmune related. So, not beginning treatment early on means chance of remissions is reduced. Some are forced to give up their jobs, reduce work hours significantly or take time off.

Facts about rheumatoid arthritis –

  • If not addressed quickly 60% sufferers have permanent disability 10 years after onset.
  • Remission means a low level of disease activity, but still pain and disability from joint changes and damage.
  • No cure – goal is to reduce symptoms and improve mobility.
  • Chronic inflammation associated with rheumatoid arthritis makes person 50% more likely to develop heart disease. Can be a high chance of associated damage to lungs, nervous system, kidney, skin and eyes.

 

I’ve found best results happen when you come from a few different angles.

Here’s 5 Natural Options for Rheumatoid Arthritis Sufferers:

1. Diet.

Huge impact on healing and management of rheumatoid arthritis

  • Eat clean – avoid processed & packaged food, numbers, preservatives
  • Add alkalising foods – Up the greens, vegetables and water
  • Add anti-inflammatory foods – leafy greens, hemp seeds, ginger, turmeric
  • Gut healing – bone broth (chicken, beef with veggies – onion, carrot, leek, celery)
  • Limit or avoid alcohol. Often associated with flare ups.
  • Caffeine drinks (coffee, tea, green tea) keep to maximum one per day.
  • Identify any allergic foods through food intolerance testing or elimination – gluten, dairy, nightshades, eggs, nuts

2. Detox

Naturopath supervised quality detox. The Detox word is thrown around so often and can mean so many different things to different people. 6-8 weeks of quality, sustainable, supervised, structured detox can have huge positive effects on reducing autoimmunity and inflammatory markers.

3. Manage stress levels

Stress drives inflammation. It’s Ok to get stressed you just can’t live there. Tools to use are declutter your life, toss out or replace what’s not working for you and replace it with something that does. Good tools to incorporate into your routine are meditation, deep breathing, being in nature, quality sleep and hypnotherapy.

4. Give your gut a makeover.

Gut health has been linked to rheumatoid arthritis in numerous studies. This isn’t surprising since your gut is 70% of your immune system. Makes sense to start here and work outwards for real lasting results. Click here to book online for gut reset.

 

What I’ve realised again and again is cleaning up at the beginning means less damage control through hardcore drugs at the end.  Small things repeated often can have a powerful long term effect that’s sustainable.  Worth considering.

Hope it’s given you food for thought and been useful?