Arthritis is one of the oldest known afflictions of human beings. There are a variety of arthritic conditions including: osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and gout. Osteoarthritis is the most common of these and often appears in the weight-bearing joints like the knees, hips and spine, and in the hands. Osteoarthritis is largely a condition of age, seen in the creaking and cracking of joints on movement. Decades of use lead to degenerative changes in the joints and the body has less ability to repair itself. Excess weight, general wear and tear, hormonal deficiencies and a lifetime of inadequate diet and exercise are also causes. The first signs of osteoarthritis show up as morning stiffness, especially in damp weather, then pain in motion that worsens with prolonged activity.

Because arthritis was commonly considered to be incurable the standard medical response has simply been to prescribe medication to reduce the symptoms.

However, these drugs fail to correct the degenerative process and have numerous side effects. Today substantial evidence is showing that the pain and disability caused by arthritis can be alleviated and often prevented, through diet, nutritional supplementation, stress reduction and other alternative therapies.

Diet improvement to normalise your body chemistry is the single most important thing you can do to control an arthritic condition. Start by changing to a low-fat mostly vegetarian diet. Avoid arthritis trigger foods like corn, wheat, bacon, pork, beef, eggs, coffee, oranges, dairy products, chocolate and cola. Night shade foods like peppers, eggplants, tomatoes and potatoes should also be avoided. Tobacco is also a night shade plant. Food allergies are often involved in arthritis. Visit an applied kinesiologist to determine if you have food allergies. Kinesiology is a Traditional Chinese Medicine technique which uses gentle muscle testing to determine allergies. Eat plenty of these body balancing foods: green tea, cherries, cabbage, brown rice, shitake mushrooms, cold water fish, sea vegetables, leafy greens, olive oil, squash, ginger and parsley.

It may be water not medication that is needed to relieve arthritis pain.

According to Dr. Batmanghelidj, author of 'Your Body's Many Cries for Water' , the parts of the body that suffer most from a shortage of water are those without direct vascular circulation, especially the joint cartilages in the fingers, knees and the vertebrae. Chronic pains in the body are often indicators of chronic dehydration, adds Dr. Batmanghelidj.

Standard drug therapy with aspirin or NSAIDs like Motrin suppress pain and inflammation, but may actually promote the progression of the disease by damaging cartilage and inhibiting the ability of the body to maintain normal collagen structures.

The search for alternative therapies for arthritis with fewer adverse side effects has lead to clinical trials with glucosamine sulphate alone or in combination with chondroitin. Studies have shown that glucosamine has the ability to both slow the progression of and even reverse some structural abnormalities associated with osteoarthritis. Glucosamine also relieved pain as effectively as ibuprofen with fewer adverse effects. The commercial supplement of glucosamine is derived from the exoskeleton of shrimp, lobster or crab.

Here are some natural supplements that help treat arthritis.

Glucosamine sulphate - 1500 mg daily combined with chondroitin sulphate- 1200mg daily.

Omega 3 flax or fish oil - show remarkable results in reducing inflammation of osteo and rheumatoid arthritis MSM - this sulphur supplement helps repair joints and reduce pain.

Aloe vera gel and devil's claw. In clinical trials on gout patients devil's claw was found to relieve joint pain, as well as reduce serum cholesterol and uric acid levels.

Acupuncture, massage therapy and chiropractic treatments are also recommended.

For more information you can e-mail natureschi(at)northrock.bm