Top 7 Home Remedies to get rid of Arthritis

Arthritis means the inflammation of one or more joints. The most common types of arthritis are—

Osteoarthritis

• In Osteoarthritis, the hard, slippery tissue which covers the ends of bones where a joint is formed gets break down. It involves wear-and-tear damage of joint's cartilage.

Rheumatoid Arthritis

• Rheumatoid Arthritis is an auto-immune disease that firsts targets the lining of joints (synovium). The body's immune system attacks the lining of the joint capsule. This lining is known as the synovial membrane becomes inflamed and swollen. It can eventually destroy cartilage and bone within the joint.
• Infections, uric acid crystals or any other underlying disease such as—lupus or psoriasis can cause other types of arthritis.

What are the symptoms of Arthritis?

Arthritis mainly affects joints-Symptoms may include

• Stiffness
• Pain
• Redness
• Swelling
• Decreased range of motion
• Fatigue
• Fever
• Weight loss

Risk factors of Arthritis include

• Family history
• Age—The risk of many types of arthritis increases with age.
• Gender—Women are more likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis than men while most of the people who have gout are men.
• Obesity—Excess body weight puts stress on joints particularly on knees, spine and hips. People who are over-weight have a higher risk of developing arthritis.

Diagnosis—In physical examination, doctor will check joints for swelling and movement. Other tests include—X-rays, CT-scan, MRI, Ultrasound.

Arthritis according to Ayurveda

• Ayurveda, rheumatoid arthritis is compared with "Amavata".
• In case of rheumatoid arthritis, our body starts creating anti-bodies even in the absence of foreign bodies. Due to the increase in the number of anti-bodies, they start attacking the healthy cells of human body. According to Ayurveda, arthritis is caused due to the formation of endotoxins- "Ama" in the body. Ama is the undigested food in our body. Because of the mal-functioning of digestive system, Ama is formed which results due to leading an unhealthy lifestyle, ingestion of stale food, stress, etc.
• This leads to the formation of erratic or unprocessed food essence (Ahara rasa) which goes into the circulation for being distributed to nourish the body tissues. This unprocessed and contaminated Ahara rasa formed in the upper gut is called "Ama" which is the underlying cause of the disease. These factors promote the formation of "Ama" in the body. In this disease, Ama often gets deposited around the joints because Ama has the property of sticking to the surface of the cells and channels of the body. and causes intense pain. According to Ayurveda, against Ama, our body creates anti-bodies.

Characteristics of Ama

• Disintegrated
• Unprocessed
• Foul smelling
• Very sticky
• Causes weakness in all body parts

So, it is clear that vitiated Vata and unattended Ama are individually capable of producing this painful disease. It is basically a disease which is caused due to the disturbance in the metabolic activities. It means that Amavata has its origin in the weak stomach.

The disease can be best treated and its progression can be halted by the skilful administration of medicines.

The principle treatment in Ayurveda includes strengthening the digestive fire (Agni Deepana), Aam Paachana, Vaatshamak and Vatunlomana.

Agni-Deepana

• Since the digestive fire is depleted in this condition, the primary target of Ayurvedic treatment is to rekindle the fire and establish its capacity to digest the food properly. The Deepana medicines have bitter and pungent tastes and are effective in handling the premonitory condition of RA. These herbs do not contribute towards Ama-pachana. The herbs that fall under this category are—Pippali (Piper longum), Chavya (Piper retrofractum), Chitraka (Plumbago zeylanica), Shunthi (Zingiber officinale), etc.

Ama Pachana

• In this case, there is a need to dry up, digest and separate the adhering Ama from the tissues. There is a need to open the channels of nutrition and circulation to free flow of essential things all through the body. As a result, pathology starts regressing and the metabolism comes back to rhythm. The herbs that are used to get rid of Ama are—Coriander, Roots of Piper longum, Piper nigrum, Turmeric, Berberis aristata, Picrorrhiza kurroa, Bitter gourd, drumstick, etc. These are bitter group of herbs and herbs which belong to Pippalyadi group, herbs belonging to Haridradi group and herbs belonging to Vachadi group.

Vatashamaka and Vatanulomana

• It is morbid Vata which is responsible for this disease as it displaces the morbid elements like—Ama in the susceptible sites like—bones, joints and soft tissues. Vata vitiation must be controlled at the earliest. When the body gets devoid of Ama, it becomes easy to expel the vitiated vata by the means of mobilising medicines. The word "Vatanulomana" means mobilising the morbid vata in the downward direction.

The best Vata alleviating herbs are—Eranda (Ricinus communis), Heeng (Ferula foetida), Kushta (Saussurea lappa), Devadaru (Cedrus deodara), Shallaki (Boswellia serrata), Bala (Sida cordifolia), Dashmula (10 roots), etc.

• The symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis is generally confused with gout (Vaat-Rakt) and Osteoarthritis (Sandigdh- Vaat).

Top 7 Home Remedies for Arthritis

• The best medicine for the patient of Rheumatoid Arthritis is Castor Oil. Take 10-15 ml of castor oil with warm water or milk at night before going to bed.
• At night, take 3 grams of Giloy powder along with 1 gm of Saunth powder with warm water.
• Include ginger in your diet. It reduces joint inflammation and muscle pain.
• Include onions and garlic in your diet. Diallyl sulphide, the compound known as—allium found in onions and garlics inhibits the enzymes that cause joints to degenerate.
• Mix 1 tsp cinnamon powder in 1 tsp of honey. Take it empty stomach every morning.
• Powder of bark of Arjuna (Terminalia arjuna) in 3-5 grams is taken along with cup of milk.
• Bark powder or seed powder of Babul (3-5 grams) with 1 spoon of honey is taken twice daily half an hour after food.

Diet Must be Included

Light, warm, easily digestible foods, ginger, turmeric, black pepper, garlic, heeng must be included in the diet

Must be Avoided

Heavy, oily, foods that cause constipation, cooling food items, jaggery, curd, rice, lady finger must be strictly avoided.