Arthritis - 9 Tips To Help You Stay On Top

Arthritis is not so much an illness as a condition and while it would be nice if there were a cure the best that sufferers can normally hope for is a way of controlling it and alleviating the worst of it.
The good news is that if you suffer from arthritis there is quite a lot you can do in this respect without the use of potentially harmful drugs.
1.
If you're overweight, lose weight.
Excess weight puts an additional burden on your skeletal structure, exacerbating any joint pain.
Now, losing weight may not be easy, but do what you can by restricting calorie intake and doing whatever gentle exercise you're comfortable with.
2.
Stretch and exercise.
Arthritis tends to build on itself by discouraging movement.
But not moving or exercising enough makes it worse and reduces any possibility of remission.
One of nature's laws is "If you don't use it, you lose it.
" Try stretching exercises on each part of your body.
Move slowly and gently, and stop immediately if it becomes painful.
Get a book on yoga and study it.
Some yoga exercises are extremely beneficial to arthritis sufferers.
3.
Lead a less stressful life if you can.
Stress leads to tension, the arch enemy of arthritis sufferers.
Try and get your life under control so you have fewer worries.
Never do anything faster than you feel comfortable with.
Learn how to relax and do so as much as possible.
There are plenty of books, audio CDs, etc, that can teach you how to do this.
Relax particularly in the evening before retiring.
Have a slow, hot bath before going to bed.
Soaking your aching joints in warm water works wonders.
4.
Swim as often as you can.
Even if you can't swim, go in the swimming pool whenever you can.
The relief you feel when your body is wholly or nearly wholly supported by water is very beneficial.
You can also carry out some stretching exercises with much less pain, as your flexibility is much greater in water.
Other beneficial exercises are walking and cycling.
5.
If you've overworked an arthritic joint, an ice pack (or packet of frozen peas) can be used to alleviate the pain.
Alternate treatment for 15 or 20 minutes with periods of rest of the same duration until the inflammation has subsided.
6.
See if a copper bracelet helps.
Copper bracelets have been used for hundreds, and maybe thousands, of years to help combat a number of illnesses, including arthritis, and to promote good health.
If your metabolism makes it difficult for your body to take in copper from the food you eat (and it's believed this may be the case with many arthritis sufferers) then you may be able to absorb it through the skin.
Thousands of people everywhere swear by copper bracelets.
They can't all be wrong.
They're not very expensive, so I'd say they're certainly worth a try.
7.
Stop taking any addictive drugs, such as painkillers, so-called sleeping pills or tranquillisers.
Your body's got enough to do in coping with your arthritis without having to deal with drugs as well.
8.
Keep records of what you eat and how your level of pain is afterwards.
This way you can identify which foods tend to  make you feel worse, and which help you feel better.
Get advice from a nutritionist if you can.
If you yearn for a particular food try and establish whether your body is telling you it needs more of it, or whether you are actually allergic to it.
If you think you may be allergic to it cut it out of your diet completely.
You may feel bad about it for a few days but if after a week you feel much better without it then you can safely assume it was making your pain worse and that therefore you're better off without it.
9.
Try a massive increase in Vitamin C and an occasional fast.
A fast should last a day and you should only consume vegetable soup.
If this seems to help, gradually increase your fast days to three a week, as long as your doctor has no objection.
These nine tips are by no means exhaustive, and news of various ways of coping with arthritis is published nearly every week.
Try to never let your arthritis get the better of you.
This isn't always easy, I know (I have a touch of arthritis myself), but the important thing is to get as much advice as you can from your doctor and specialist, and always be on the look out for new developments and discoveries in this field.
Just because a cure is most unlikely doesn't mean there won't be fresh ways of finding relief being discovered from time to time.