anyone. can shed some light on herbs. to help with pain. and. RA?

[pachawk318]

I have RA and due to it I have pain. I have heard there is herbs like devil's claw that helps pain and RA. Anyone know any other herbs?

[Paxiled]

This is probably going to come out twice, as I already posted this, but, again, that's brave of you, Gym.  I hope it works out.

[Paxiled]

A brave thing to do, Gym.  I hope it works.

[gymdandee]

Yes!! The Dr. wasn't happy. I weigh the turmeric and bioperine so it's consistent. We will see!

[Paxiled]

So have you replaced the warfarin with the turmeric?  That's pretty cool.

[gymdandee]

Placebo, I think not! I'm using it to prevent blood clots and my INR is good.
It doesn't take much to mess up my INR. I need to watch my vitamin K intake
Especially when eating out have no idea what the preparation is. I ask whats in the meal and ask them to leave certain items out. But who knows if it's cooked with the greens and then removed before plating.

[gymdandee]

As per your past posts each individual is different! Not a little for me! it works  

[Paxiled]

How do you know?  Ever tried the turmeric without the black pepper to see if it's any different?  Frankly, when you take herbs for anti-inflammatory (as well as most purposes), it's not how much you use as much as how often so that they stay in the system, and all of these herbs were used long before we learned that black pepper contains bioperine and that might make things absorb better.  And never underestimate the power of placebo.  It's really and truly the best medicine when it works.

[gymdandee]

Before doing anything talk to your doctor!!!

Low Dose Naltrexone
http://www.lowdosenaltrexone.org/

As for turmeric, add 10 mg of black pepper to 1,000 mg turmeric helps with absorption.

[Paxiled]

Well, a little, but the absorption studies weren't done with black pepper but with bioperine, an ingredient in black pepper.  Using bulk turmeric or bulk black pepper isn't using medicinal quality herbs necessarily, particularly if they've been irradiated, as most have been if you shop in the supermarket.  Herbs used for health purposes, when bought from the best companies, are closely watched through the growing process to make sure they have the requisite potency as best as can be done.

[Paxiled]

First of all, we don't know what meds you're on.  Herbs can conflict with them.  We also don't know your condition -- devil's claw is one good herb for your condition, but it also contains a little of the acid that causes aspirin to cause internal bleeding, so if you have that problem you might want to go easy on it.  If you don't, it's fine.  There are many herbs that are anti-inflammatory in action.  Two used often with RA are the one you mentioned and boswellia.  There's also turmeric, ginger, fish oil, proteolytic enzymes taken between meals, and, really, just a host of things out there to try.  But since you don't know your herbs and we don't know your overall condition, the best thing to do is get a good book on the subject and how natural healing is done.  Diet will be a part of it, as many foods are pro-inflammatory for most people, such as wheat and dairy, and nightshade plants have been implicated in some people with RA.  After you've done your homework, it would help to see a naturopath or other practitioner of natural medicine to come up with a program that is safe for you and hopefully effective.