8 Natural Alternatives for anti inflammatories

I was interested in seeing what other alternatives there are out there as far as ant inflammatories go so I googled it. I came upon an interesting article. The article had the following suggestions:

1. Omega-3 Fatty Acids From Fish Oils: The omega-3 fats EPA and DHA found in fish oil have been found by many animal and clinical studies to possess anti-inflammatory properties that promote joint lubrication and decrease joint inflammation. Animal based omega-3 fats form the precursors to the molecules that actually produce or inhibit inflammation in your body (prostaglandins). That is why it is essential to make sure you are getting enough. It is also vital to understand that you need to reduce omega-6 fats like vegetable oils seeds and nuts, as it is actually the ratio of omega 6:3 fats that determines how much inflammation is present. You could theoretically consume enough omega-3 fish oils to work but then ruin the effect by consuming too many omega-6 fats.

2. Ginger: This herb is anti-inflammatory and offers pain relief and stomach-settling properties. Fresh ginger works well steeped in boiling water as a tea or grated into vegetable juice.

3. Bromelain Enzymes: This enzyme, found in pineapples, is a natural anti-inflammatory. It can be taken in supplement form, but eating fresh pineapple may also be helpful.

4. Cetyl Myristoleate (CMO): This oil, found in fish and dairy butter, acts as a "joint lubricant" and an anti-inflammatory. In one study of 106 people with various types of arthritis who did not respond to NSAIDs, 63.5 percent of those who took CMO orally and applied the cream topically (it's available both in oral supplement and cream forms) improved, compared to only 14.5 percent of those taking a placebo.

5. Boswellia: aka “boswellin” or "Indian frankincense," this herb contains specific active anti-inflammatory ingredients, referred to as boswellic acids that animal studies have shown significantly reduce inflammation. In a study of 175 patients with rheumatic disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis, 122 participants had reduced stiffness and inflammation just two to four weeks after starting on boswellia.

6. Evening Primrose Oil (or borage oil or black current oil): These contain the essential fatty acid gamma linolenic acid (GLA), which is useful for treating arthritic pain. In one study of 37 rheumatoid arthritis patients, those who received 1.4 grams of GLA per day reduced the number of tender joints by 36 percent, the tenderness of the joints by 45 percent, the number of swollen joints by 28 percent, and the degree of joint swelling by 41 percent. The placebo group showed no significant improvements.

7. Cayenne Pepper: (capsaicin) in the form of cayenne cream: Also called capsaicin cream, this spice comes from dried hot peppers. It alleviates pain by depleting the body's supply of substance P, a chemical component of nerve cells that transmits pain signals to the brain.

8. White Willow Bark: Aspirin is made from the bark of the white willow. People have been using white willow bark for centuries as a mild pain reliever. White willow bark does not destroy the stomach lining on contact the way aspirin does, however, it does have the same blood thinning effect as aspirin and caution is indicated.

here's the link to the article if anyone wants to check it out
http://ezinearticles.com/?Eight-Natural-Alternatives-to-Anti-Inflammatory-Medication&id=131679

BOTOX to treat arthritis??

New studies show that maybe Botulinium type A (Botox) may help pain and function of arthritic patients. There was a study conducted in 2006 published in Neurotoxicity Research that tested Botox injection efficacy among 11 patients with different forms of arthritis. The subject group was given one or more Botox injections within the afflicted joint, and then followed for a year post-treatment. 

All 11 participants reported improvements of pain and function, these results differing among patients, with different degree of improvements anywhere from three to twelve months afterward. However, there was no placebo test group, and the amount of injection was not standardized, leading to more studies to further investigate. The treatment seems promising, as no patient trial was complicated with adverse effects. 

Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota is beginning a trial to test the results of Botox injections of arthritic knees. Because Botox has been proven to paralyze muscle and nerve endings, there is a great chance that it may help subside severe pain in patients who no longer respond to cortisone treatments. Actually, several Botox trials are being looked into for pain and inflammation relief, so who knows what will happen! 

South Beach Diet

After reading the Great Debate, I wanted to find out more about the south beach diet.
I read that it is a three phase plan and that its claim to fame is that you will loose the weight you need to loose and that it will improve your cardiovascular system. I really liked that the system was a life long program however; I thought that some things needed to be changed.
It states that phase 1 is two weeks in which you eat as much as you normally would however you eat three well balanced or healthy meals in order to subdue cravings. My problem is that it takes more than two weeks to learn how to eat healthy and maintain regularity in the process. Think of it in terms of a New Year’s resolution when you have to take baby steps and perform regularly for the new habit to stick. Two weeks has never made anyone’s New Years resolution stick.
Phase 2 is about loosing weight by continuing to eat healthy and with portion control in order to achieve your goal weight. This phase can go on as long as one pleases. Last is phase 3 were you are at your goal weight and you maintain it however the foods that you are allowed to eat are less restricted. The synopsis of phase three goes on to say that at this point in time you will improve your cardiovascular system. Any one who is clearly overweight and looses a significant amount of weight will improve, but the way it is described might have your average person thinking that it pertains specifically to this diet and not dieting in general. I personally think that they should elaborate on the idea so that people understand that that is common to weight loss.
Finally I see no mention about exercise, a crucial player in weight loss and improving health. Does anyone else have issues with that?

This is the website I got my info from
http://www.southbeach-diet-plan.com/index.html

Reduce LDL with a low carb diet?

In this weeks lay article, "The Great Diet Debate" two Dr's debated over The South Beach Heart Program. Dr. Agatston, the author of the book, claims this program will detect, prevent, and even reverse heart disease although a study showed this diet did not lower LDL cholesterol levels. Dr. Agatston also prescribes his patients drugs to lower their LDL cholesterol instead of advising them to eat less fat and exercise.
I think putting people on a low carb diet to help treat and prevent heart disease is, well, stupid. The south beach diet may help people with short-term weight loss which in turn can reduce the risk of heart disease, but this diet includes meats high in fat which are not the most heart-healthy foods. As stated in a previous blog, this issue goes back to the overall theme of the class: EAT HEALTHY AND EXERCISE. As Dr. Ornish stated in the article, diets that include omega-3 fatty acids can dramatically decrease cardiac events and reduce inflammation. So, eat less trans and saturated fats, eat more omega-3, and exercise!

Anti-Inflammatory Foods

A major cause of inflammation in our bodies is the food we eat. Inflammation can be aggravated by diets high in refined or hydrogenated vegetable oils such as those found in margarines, potato chips and baked goods and by diets high in sugars. Food can also be part of the solution to inflammation; anti-inflammatory foods, if eaten regularly, can reduce inflammation in the body.

Vegetables: Bell Peppers, Bok Choy, Broccoli, Broccoli Sprouts, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Chard Collards, Fennel Bulb, Garlic, Green Beans, Green Onions/Spring Onions, Kale, Leeks, Olives, Spinach, Sweet potatoes, Turnip, Greens

Oils: Avocado Oil, Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Drinks: Green Tea

Herbs & Spices: Basil, Cayenne Peppers/Chili Peppers, Cinnamon Cloves, Cocoa (at least 70% cocoa chocolate), Licorice, Mint, Oregano, Parsley, Rosemary, Thyme, Turmeric

Fruits: Acerola (West Indian) Cherries, Apples, Avocados, Black Currants,
Blueberries, Fresh Pineapple, Guavas, Kiwifruit, Kumquats, Lemons, Limes, Mulberries, Oranges, Papaya, Raspberries, Rhubarb, Strawberries, Tomatoes

Nuts & Seeds: Almonds, Flaxseed/Linseed, Hazelnuts, Sunflower Seeds, Walnuts

Fish: Cod, Halibut, Herring, Oysters, Rainbow Trout, Salmon, Sardines, Snapper Fish, Striped Bass, Tuna, Whitefish

List of Anti-inflammatory Foods from: http://www.metabolismadvice.com/

Acupuncture

Another article that I read about anti-inflammatories discussed the benefits of acupuncture on different inflammatory diseases. I really liked this article because it went into pretty good detail about the different inflammatory diseases as well as the effect the acupuncture had on them. Their results showed that acupuncture mainly benefitted patients with asthma. The acupuncture also seemed to help with rhinitis after allergen provocation. Results seemed inconclusive for arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease. The article states that more studies need to be done in order to provide conclusive evidence but I thought it was still an interesting idea.

The full article can be seen here,
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=1781596&blobtype=pdf

Stinging Nettle as an Anti-Inflammatory

As i was looking for different alternative anti-inflammatories, I came across a few articles that suggested the use of stinging nettles, particularly to ease the pain caused by rheumatoid arthritis. The stinging nettle is a plant whose stinging hairs on are sharp, polished spines that contain histamine and formic acid. Normally these stinging hairs are painful to the touch but when they come into contact with an area that is already in pain the chemicals can actually decrease the original pain.
Today the plant can also be used to treat urinary problems in the early stages of an enlarged prostate, eczema, gout, anemia, and kidney stones. It is available in many different forms; dried leaves, tea, root tincture (a solution of the herb in alcohol), cream, and in capsule form.

The full article can be found here,
http://www.healthandage.com/html/res/com/ConsHerbs/StingingNettlech.html

Portions! Portions! Portions!...and content too

This week, all of the lay articles seemed to have a common theme: Watch what you eat, and you will succeed in your endevor to become a healthy individual. This is a concept that is not particularly striking and an idea we have previously discussed in class. As a recap, roughly 60% of the American public is clinically over weight, and from articles we have previously read in this class, reducing caloric intake of the general population seems capable of increasing life expectancy. This idea only seems logical for those 60% (or more) Americans.

In Snacking in the Line of Duty the author discussed the benefits of consuming small portion sizes despite the fact that many of these snacks lack any real nutritional value. It makes sense that the American public might benefit from only consuming 100 calories of chocolate rather than 250. In essence, the article states that these snacks are great for helping to portion meals. So, how much of a problem do our American portions present to our health. While on line, I looked up article that discussed the differeneces between the portion sizes in Japan and the US. At a McDonalds in the US, the Big Mac has 560 calories, and the largest drink size is a 32 oz, 310 calorie soda. In Japan, the same "Big Mac" has only 500 calories, and more surprisingly, the largest drink is only an 18 oz, 181 calorie drink. The article went on to say that in the US, an average serving of pasta at a restaurant is 480% of a recommended serving, and that an average cookie from a restaurant might be up to 700% of a recommended serving size. Wondering what that means in calorie world? Well, I went to an online calorie counter and found several values of portions sizes in popular family restaurants.
The results? Olive garden has a chicken (healthy, right?) dish that is over 1100 calories, chilie's has a salad that is almost 100o calories, and a breakfast at IHOP can cost you over 130o calories. So much for six small meals a day.

So what does this all mean? In essence this is just more proof that the epidemic of obesity in the US is largely a matter of large portion sizes. If portions were reduced, many of the maladies of obesity, inflammation included, could become a problem of the past. With reduced inflammation, the diseases that result therefrom could also be inhibited, leading to a healthier society in general. A solution? I say we keep portion sizes, and split meals for more cost effective dates. ;)

Chocolate May be good for you.

The most recent group of papers sent to us included two seperate papers making reference to chocolate and its anti-inflammatory effects. The first was "Snacking in the Line of Duty." Here was a very quick reference to flavanols which "relax blood vessels, improve blood flow, decrease blood clotting and redue inflammation." The second article was "Chocolate 'has health benefits'". After reading these articles idecided to look at this more closely. When I typed in "flavanol" in the Yahoo search engine 4 of the first 5 entries were from the Hershey Company. Looking at these entries they were using their website to explain the benefits of flavanol. Surprisingly they also mentioned flavanols could be found in berries, teas and red wines as well. Without disputing the positive effects of flavanol I think we can still say chocolate will not be changing it's status to "health food." As the Snacking in the Line of Duty article shows, having some benefits, such as flavanols, does not necessarily outweigh the downside, such as fat and sugar. The second article makes mention of diabetics eating chocolate. However, if you look at the ingredients in Hershey's Special Dark chocolate bar the first ingredient listed is still sugar. If the individual has Type 2 diabetes, the flavanols might help with the metabolizing of sugar but if the individual is a Type 1 diabetic, the pancreas is not producing insulin and the individual will need to inject higher doses of insulin to compensate for the higher intake of sugar.
Unfortunately for the many chocolate lovers in the world it looks like more evidence will be needed to say it actually has "benefits".

Comparison of the Intestinal Toxicity of Celecoxib, a Selective COX-2 Inhibitor, and Indomethacin in the Experimental Rat

Gastrointestinal toxicity of NSAIDS appears to be due to a “topical” effect and inhibiting of COX-1; where as, selective COX-2 inhibitors show great GI tolerability. The “topical” component in the pathogenic mechanism for damage is thought to involve the uncoupling of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation with increasing intestinal permeability. (The "topical" effect may be due to the detergent-like action of NSAIDs, with the combination of their lipid soluble component and acidity.)The increase in permeability leads to mucosal inflammation. This inhibition may cause inflammation to turn into ulcers. COX-2 is thought to suppress PG synthesis in the areas of inflammation, while also controlling constitutive PG synthesis in the GI tract. This idea was tested using Celecoxib, a selective COX-2 inhibitor, and Indomethacin, which is a non-selective acidic COX inhibitor.

Celecoxib did not have a “topical” effect in their experiment assessing mitochondrial functioning, nor did it lead to changes that may be characteristic of uncouplers of oxidative phosphorylation. Indomethacin did both, while causing intestinal ulcers! Celecoxib did not show any significant damage to the small intestines though, and showed a lack of reduction in intestinal PGE; where as, Indomethacin reduced PGE levels 90%. Indomethacin clearly has damaging effects on the intestines, but Celecoxib does not. The combination of its selectivity and absence of a “topical” effect is thought to be the reason. I found this article interesting, as it went more in depth than I did here, in explaining the possible effects of these NSAIDs because many people around the world are on anti-inflammatory medications. Granted these experiments were done in rats, and one drug was shown to not be harmful, many people have complications with anti-inflammatory medications. They can be quite helpful but are they always worth the risk?!

Oh yeah....That gerbil is awesome!