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THE LIST OF FALSE REMEDIES FOR ARTHRITISAcupunctureThe ancient Chinese—to fight arthritis—pricked the skin with needles made from different kinds of metals. When the surface puncture did not bring relief, they turned to acupuncture—piercing the deeper-lying organic structures.The purpose of this “medical stunt” is still debatable, although it was believed that piercing altered nerve currents and blood-vessel reflexes. Another drastic form of “cure” was burning with fire-soaked fibres. Small cones of fibres—taken from a flax-like plant called artemisia—were drenched with saltpetre, placed in the inflamed region of the body, and lighted! Think of the excruciating pain . . . and be glad you live in modern times.These terrible customs were not limited to the Chinese. The Japanese, Tibetans, and Malayans also employed the same tactics.TattooingThe highly decorated bodies of the African Negros are considered beautiful among their fellows. But did you know that a tattoo was also supposed to ease their arthritic pains? Certain types of tattooing have long been used to chase evil spirits. It hasn’t worked yet. In fact, I have actually met a tattooed man in a circus side-show who has arthritis!Hindu Habits HurtAbout 1ooo B.C. the Hindus of India became convinced that superficial arthritis was a skin and muscle disturbance, and they thought that nerve and joint conditions were deeper organic malfunctions. To cure it was a question of alteration or elimination.So, the Hindus turned to vegetable drugs to cleanse their bodies. Their methods of counter-irritation included liniments, applying bloodsucking leeches to the body, bleeding of veins and cauterisation by burning. They even tried cutting . . . making small superficial incisions which they termed scarification. The result: soon they had scars and arthritis!HippocratesHippocrates, the immortal Greek, contributed a great deal to medicine. But he was just as wrong as everyone else about arthritis. He believed, way back there around the year 450 B.C., that arthritics should be “drained.” He insisted that inflammatory fluids should be drained through the skin. Today, it is known that all too many cases of this illness do not show any sign of fluid.Hippocrates also thought of arthritis in terms of retained body poisons—especially in the female sex, when scanty menstruation or menopause was present. The Greek scholar criticised the men, and blamed their arthritis on excessive wine and sexual relations. (Hippocrates was wrong! Sex habits are not related in any way with arthritis.)WineOn the matter of excessive wine drinking, however, he was on the right track. The fact that the value of oils can be largely destroyed by wines is a correct observation. Consuming wine—in great quantity, like the Greeks of old—would take a drastic toll of ingested fats.The heavy wine-drinking in those days had an injurious effect on metabolism. Kept the liver in a constant state of repairing itself. No wonder thousands of people in those days became victims of gouty arthritis.Purging the BodyAccording to Hippocrates, pain above the diaphragm could be eliminated by forced vomiting. And, he said, all other pain below the waist could be removed by downward purging—by the use of strong laxatives or enemas.Can you possibly imagine an enema relieving the pain in a finger of the left hand? According to physicians of old, why not? The finger is below the diaphragm—and a warm saline solution can cleanse the blood. From the standpoint of logic, Hippocrates went too far with his ideas about purging. In all probability he urged sweating and bleeding, too.The Greeks blamed Uric Acid and Horseback RidingIn early Greece, too much Spartan horseback riding was considered a cause of arthritis. If they had painful hips, it was supposedly due to riding —or deposits of uric acid in the hip joints.The Greeks thought that the sciatic nerve was accumulating sticky deposits of black bile. Horseback riding might—through constant friction— injure a susceptible joint inclined to accumulate uric acid.Now, more than 2000 years later, the term uric acid has replaced the title of black bile. Acids and friction do complicate arthritis, so there was a germ of truth in those early Greek ideas.Turning the Heat on ArthritisThere must be millions of arthritics today who have arthritis of the spine. Fortunately for them, the practices of Hippocrates are outmoded. His theory of cure for this malady consisted of cauterisation … by burning!The back, on both sides of the spinal column, were given four burns. Then fifteen more burns were inflicted on each side of the spine. And, to top it off, two burns were added to each side of the neck. There are not many persons, arthritic or otherwise, who could endure this form of torture. (Personally, we would probably rather have arthritis!)*55\146\2*

First, all exercises should be planned in accordance with the individual needs and capabilities of the patient. No two cases are alike and, consequently, only a general outline of the program can be given here.

As was pointed out before, the body afflicted with arthritis usually suffers from poor circulation, stagnation, and sluggishness. Restoration of the proper circulation is, therefore, essential before the body can effectively accomplish its own healing task. The bloodstream carries fresh oxygen and nutritive elements to all the tissues and organs of the body. It also carries toxic waste materials from the tissues to the eliminative organs where they are expelled from the system. Thus, effective circulation is imperative for successful results in any program of treatment for arthritis.

There are many ways to stimulate circulation, such as massage, alternating hot and cold baths, dry brush massage, etc. But physical exercise in the fresh air is one of the most effective ways to rebuild circulation. For this reason outdoor walking is the most popular form of exercise in all biological clinics.

Of course we should not forget that often a patient is in such a weak condition that he is unable to take any walks. Also, if joints are badly inflamed and painful no exercises should be taken at all-such a patient needs rest more than exercises. But as soon as pain has subsided, immediately a gradually increasing program of exercises should be initiated.

Outside walking is the simplest and most effective way to assist your body’s healing and health restoring processes. It will stimulate your glands to secrete more hormones. It will accelerate your metabolism and digestion. It will saturate your blood and all the cells of the body with fresh oxygen. It will assist your eliminative organs in their detoxifying work through the lungs, skin, and intestines. Moreover, a walk in the fresh air, especially in the woods or some other beautiful natural surroundings, will put you in good spirits, stimulate your thinking, and make you feel happy and jubilant all over.

In addition to walking, various other exercises could be used, such as deep-breathing exercises, arm and leg exercises, etc. All this should be adjusted to the condition and ability of the patient. When any particular joint or part of the body is affected it should first be exercised very slowly and, as the movements become freer, the exercises could be gradually accelerated.

To summarize the answer to the question: What exercises are best for arthritis?, I must say that all specific exercises of various joints, limbs, and other parts of the body should be carefully planned in accordance with the needs of each individual case and preferably under expert supervision. However, of far greater importance to the recovery of the patient are various forms of “natural” exercise in fresh air: walking, riding bicycling, swimming, dancing, horse riding, playing games, or any kind of suitable outdoor work, such as gardening. I am a firm believer in natural exercises that give you the benefit of physical exertion without much will effort while simultaneously giving you emotional and spiritual stimulation and enjoyment.

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Let’s first have a look at sea cucumber, an ancient therapeutic agent used for thousands of years in Chinese medicine. Numerous modem scientific research studies show that sea cucumber helps to control inflammatory processes in the body. As a result, sea cucumber often provides relief of the inflammation associated with rheumatoid and osteoarthritis, tendinitis, sports injuries, sprains, and joint pains, as well as other inflammatory diseases. One study found that it also improved the body’s overall resistance to stress.

Sea cucumber works by helping to regulate biochemical substances known as prostaglandins which are involved in inflammatory processes. It also contains chondroitin which the body finds valuable to help produce new joint cartilage, and it is a good source of lubricating compounds that are found in the joints and joint fluids. The famous nutritionist Earl Mindell describes sea cucumber as “an even more potent anti-inflammatory agent than hydrocortisone.” The benefits of sea cucumber for most arthritis patients has even been proved in medical studies. It has been approved by the Australian Department of Health as an effective treatment for arthritis and is widely used in the Orient and Europe for that purpose.

An analysis of dried sea cucumber reveals that it is about 80% protein. Other substances found are chondroitin sulphate, and the beneficial minerals boron, calcium, chromium, copper, iodine, iron, magnesium, manganese, silicon, and zinc. Good mineral balance in the body has always been recognized as being valuable for joint health. The safety and the effectiveness of sea cucumber’s therapeutic effects has been demonstrated over thousands of years in practical application, as well as now by modern laboratory testing and clinical trials. Though rare, a few sensitive persons have developed a minor rash from its use.

More evidence of the beneficial effects of the combination of CMO and sea cucumber has been provided by a study conducted by Dr Alan Edwards in England. He reports on a small trial with fibromyalgia suffers which showed improvement for the majority after only 4 weeks use of this combination. Importantly, those that improved showed a very promising improvement, whilst those that did not, had hardly any positive impact at all, perhaps because they failed to absorb the nutrients involved. At the time writing this report is awaiting publication in a respected journal, currently scheduled for the middle of this year.

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