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Natural Help for Arthritis Sufferers
May 2008
ABSTRACT: A common ailment that comes with aging is arthritis – osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and gout. While there is no cure to these conditions, there are different therapeutic options available to us to assist in slowing the progression of these conditions and improve the quality of life for those afflicted with these conditions.
Glucosamine and chondroitin assist in these conditions and are commonly used. Medications known as COX-2 inhibitors are also often used however these come with side effects. Phellodendron and ginger are naturally occurring COX-2 inhibitors that do not cause the side effects associated with conventional COX-2 inhibitors. ABCarsa Giox combines glucosamine and chondroitin with phellodendron and ginger, slowing the progression of these conditions while also reducing inflammation.
One fact of life that we cannot get away from is the aging process. We all go through it. And with aging comes other problems – health problems – that arise to make what can be a hectic life more troublesome, and painful.
One of the things we take for granted are our bones and joints. Normally, our joints have cartilage that acts like a spongy cushion. Cartilage protects our bones and tissues from the impact created from walking and other bodily movements. When arthritis strikes, this cushion may change, causing joint damage with excruciating pain, which restricts limb movement and mobility.
Arthritis can appear in different forms. There is osteoarthritis, a localised disorder mostly associated with joint deterioration. There is rheumatoid arthritis which may result from rheumatism. And there is gout, which occurs from urea build up in the joints.
Osteoarthritis is the most common type of Arthritis. This is due to degeneration, destruction and erosion of the cartilage in bone joints. Eventually bones may directly scrape against one another.
Rheumatoid arthritis, a symptom of rheumatism, is the second most common type of arthritis. Rheumatoid Arthritis is an autoimmune disease and involving chronic inflammation of the synovial membranes of the joints, destroying cartilage, bone and other adjacent tissues.
Then there’s Gout, a form of arthritis where excess uric acid is present in blood, tissue and urine, causing accumulation of crystals of uric acid around the joints. Gout is also regarded as a form of rheumatism.
So what can we do to reduce the effects of arthritis? There are a number of medications which may provide some benefits in lifestyle such as aspirin, non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and steroids.
The body has an inflammatory pathway involving cyclooxygenase, or COX. Aspirin and NSAIDs block COX in both its forms, COX-1 and COX-2. COX-2 produces prostaglandins, which are powerful triggers of pain and inflammation, while COX-1 is necessary for stomach lining protection. So, inhibiting COX-1 activity interferes with this protective effect, causing gastric disturbances ranging from simple discomfort to bleeding ulcers. For this reason the new COX-2 inhibitors, which block COX-2 with little effect on COX-1, have rocketed in popularity.
The problem is that inhibition of COX-2 is thought to increase production of the proinflammatory factors TNF- alpha and IL-1b [6,7,8] meaning that COX-2 inhibition may perpetuate the underlying degenerative process while relieving its superficial symptoms (i.e. the short-term effects of COX-2 inhibitors on the pain and swelling of inflammation and arthritis may be achieved at the cost of an increased long-term tissue damage with which these cytokines have been associated [6].
So, as you can see, these medications are often only beneficial in relieving pain in the short term, but they produce long lasting serious side effects and other health problems such as gut, liver and kidney damage. Conventional arthritis drugs worldwide kill thousands of people every year with many more people needing hospital care. Worst of all, long term use of many of these drugs can result in complete joint immobilization, as these drugs fail to treat the cause of the arthritis, further damaging cartilage and preventing joint repair [1].
So are there alternatives? There are natural products that contain glucosamine and chondroitin, which in themselves are natural components of healthy joint tissue, being readily available as dietary supplements. They supply the natural raw materials cartilage needs to repair and rebuild itself, while also suppressing the natural enzymes that break cartilage down in the first place.
Glucosamine alone or in combination with chondroitin is often recognized as the treatment of choice for arthritis in the United States. Its ability to repair and improve joint function in addition to providing pain relief gives it a significant advantage over conventional treatment.
Now glucosamine and chondroitin are very good, but are there other ingredients that can assist in managing arthritis, or better yet, repair joint tissue? Just as arthritis is not one condition, no single ingredient is likely to yield satisfactory results. A systemic approach targeting proinflammatory cytokines that cause cartilage destruction is required.
Some products contain methylsulfonylmethane (MSM, or dimethylsulfone). While there have been some claims regarding the benefits of MSM, its efficacy (i.e., its effectiveness), has been questioned. MSM is often promoted as a natural source of sulfur, suggesting that people are deficient in sulfur intake. Protein in the diet however, is an abundant source of sulfur which is contained in amino acids such as methionine and cysteine. Commonly marketed in combination with glucosamine and/or chondroitin, research into the medical use of MSM is limited. So what else is there?
New research is shedding light on how arthritis develops at the cellular and molecular levels. Evidence suggests that some proinflammatory cytokines and enzymes generate inflammatory mediators that break down the collagen matrix. Cytokines are proteins that carry messages between cells and regulate immunity and inflammation. Two cytokines, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) and interleukin one beta (IL-1 beta), play an essential role in the cartilage destruction and inflammation process [2,3,4,5].
Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) Inhibitors (Naturally Occurring)
So how can we reduce these inflammatory and destructive symptoms while at the same time also improving the arthritic condition? There are natural ingredients that have been found to provide the benefits associated with COX-2 inhibition while avoiding the joint damaging and other side effects associated with the use of COX-2 inhibitors.
Evidence has come to light that phellodendron and ginger provide protective and antiinflammatory effects for arthritic conditions. Berberine, a component of phellodendron, delivers anti-inflammatory properties via COX-2 inhibition2,28,29. Prescription COX-2 inhibitors intervene in the inflammation cascade by blocking the action of the COX-2 enzyme. Berberine however, inhibits COX-2 gene expression, preventing its manufacture in the first place. So, berberine inhibits the damaging and inflammatory effects associated with COX-2 activity while also improving the underlying condition.
Phellodendron is a versatile herb. As inflammatory factors have been linked with neurological conditions, COX-2 inhibition due to phellodendron has been found to provide benefits in the prevention and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease,9 while other studies have linked inflammatory processes with neurodegenerative conditions such as Lou Gehrig’s and Parkinson’s diseases [10,11].
In addition to the above, phellodendron has been shown to possess anti-thrombotic properties, [12,13] and provide benefits for the immune system (with activity against bacterial and fungal infection), for digestion (with antidiarrheal activity), diabetes (antiglycemic), cardiovascular health (antiplatelet), antitumor (antiproliferative), bone health (osteoporotic), as well as possessing antioxidant properties [14].
A number of studies have indicated that ginger possesses antiinflammatory properties, inhibiting COX-2 and 5-lipoxygenase (5-LOX) activity [15-18]. Like COX-2, the 5-lipoxygenase enzyme is also a pro-inflammatory agent. Ginger safely modulates COX-2 activity while balancing COX-1 activity (the enzyme responsible for gastric mucosal integrity) in a manner vastly superior to synthetic NSAIDs [19]. A recent study determined that ginger extract inhibited the production of nitric oxide and prostaglandin E2, both of which are implicated in the inflammation associated with arthritis [19].
Along with its antiinflammatory properties, ginger also provides other benefits. It has been discovered that constituents of ginger suppress the growth of, and can cause the death of, leukemia and colon cancer cells [20]. Ginger has analgesic characteristics with benefits in treating headache, nausea, and vomiting [21-22]. Ginger has also been shown to be beneficial for the cardiovascular system (anticoagulant), for bone health (improving calcium absorption), and for regulating blood sugar levels [21]. There is also evidence that ginger may be beneficial in certain degenerative neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, and also possessing antitumor activity [27].
The synergistic properties of glucosamine, chondroitin, phellodendron, and ginger can be found in AB Carsa Giox. For further information on AB Carsa Giox, please click here.
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14. Natural Standard Monograph (www.naturalstandard.com) Copyright © 2008.
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23. Wigler I, et al. The effects of Zintona EC (a ginger extract) on symptomatic gonarthritis. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2003 Nov;11(11):783-9.
24. Altman RD, Marcussen KC. Effects of a ginger extract on knee pain in patients with osteoarthritis. Arthritis Rheum. 2001 Nov;44(11):2531-8.
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27. Grzanna R, et al. Ginger extract inhibits beta-amyloid peptide-induced cytokine and chemokine expression in cultured THP-1 monocytes. J Altern Complement Med. 2004 Dec;10(6):1009-13.
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29. Chen CC, et al. Role of the cyclic AMP-protein kinase A pathway in lipopolysaccharide-induced nitric oxide synthase expression in RAW 264.7 macrophages. Involvement of cyclooxygenase-2. J Biol Chem. 1999 Oct 29;274(44):31559-64.
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