We get a good number of people in the office complaining of joint pain; they often say they have arthritis in their joints. After viewing an x-ray, they are told they have arthritis and the joint may require surgery. Over the past 10 years, we have seen joint replacement surgeries skyrocket. Hips, knees, and shoulders make up the bulk of them. The big problem with how we are treating these cases is that many do not require the invasive surgeries that are being performed. Studies have shown that when you take x-rays or MRIs on people who have no pain, they can still have arthritis. Let us look at why this is happening.
Arthritis can be broken down into two types: degenerative osteoarthritis (think joint replacement) and autoimmune arthritis (rheumatoid, gout, psoriatic). Both can be painful and debilitating when left untreated and both have inflammation at the center of the cause. I want to even challenge the thought that osteoarthritis should be labeled an autoimmune disease due to the inflammation component.
Inflammation that is not resolved will lead to disease. Where does this inflammation start? In the gut as all disease starts in the gut. The big things that start this process include stress, toxins, hormone imbalances, infections, and nutritional deficiencies/dietary intolerances. One or more of these will create a cascade of events, leading your body to attack the joints and create the inflammation seen on an x-ray.
Osteoarthritis occurs when there is a breakdown or injury to a joint. As people age, the space between their joints decreases creating a bone-on-bone condition that leads to arthritis. The stiffness people feel is the decrease in joint motion due to this loss of joint space. Inflammatory arthritis is an autoimmune disease that attacks the joints of the body, breaking them down through your own immune system. The most common type is rheumatoid arthritis which affects 2 million people each year – mostly women. It usually starts in the hands and feet but can affect other joints such as the hip, knee, and shoulder. Blood tests are usually done to confirm the diagnosis so that treatment can begin.
The conventional medical treatment typically includes pain medications and corticosteroids with powerful disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) that suppress the immune system. The problem once again is that the medical community is not asking why the body is attacking itself and where is all this inflammation coming from.
Since all disease starts in the gut – looking there first would be a great place to begin. Inflammation in the gut leads to a leaky gut. A leaky gut then allows food particles to pass into the bloodstream causing your body to attack this ‘foreign invader’ by creating antibodies to it. The problem is that these antibodies can also attack the body if the ‘foreign invader’ looks like something in our body. It would make sense to heal and seal up the gut first if you want to help reduce the inflammation.
Stopping the damage of inflammation starts with removing the root cause of the inflammation. Is the person stressed to the gills and needs help with that? Do they have toxins over-running their body? Is there an underlying infection that needs to be addressed? Hormones that are out of balance? What are they eating and even more importantly what are they not eating? These all need to be ruled out and addressed if you want to stop the damage.
We then add nutrients to resolve the inflammation and replace any digestive agents such as stomach acid, enzymes, and bile salts, to help breakdown the foods we do eat. We then want to repair the tissues of the stomach and gut lining and seal up the leaky gut. Lastly, we look to provide a healthy environment for the gut bacteria to grow and flourish. This process can take a while but the benefits are long term.
I always like to prescribe exercises for people who have joint pain. Muscle mass is the new ‘vital sign’. Having low muscle mass is linked to every chronic illness/disease out there. Starting slowly with simple patterns like push/pull/squat/hip hinge are wonderful. Doing what your body allows is key so you can do them on a daily basis. It can help reduce the need for medications and doctors as well. The best is usually a low-intensity program that involves bodyweight exercise, walking, and swimming.
Getting adjusted by a chiropractor is also a good idea. There are numerous forms of manual therapy that arthritis patients can benefit from. Also, most chiropractors know some soft-tissue techniques – we like to use Graston Technique – that will not cause them joint pain. People do not have to live in pain any longer or suffer the side effects of medication. Conservative chiropractic treatment can improve arthritis quality of life.
The important thing to remember in all of this – there are options that can improve your health. You are not some X-ray or MRI report. Find ways to improve the health of your joints, tissues, and gut so you can live a life you want.
Dr. Brian Opp, Chiropractor