Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid Arthritis
Rheumatoid Arthritis (known as Amavata in Ayurveda) is an autoimmune disease that causes chronic inflammation of the joints. It can also cause inflammation of the tissue around the joints, as well as in other organs in the body. Autoimmune diseases are illnesses that occur when the body's tissues are mistakenly attacked by their own immune system. Patients with autoimmune diseases have antibodies in their blood that target their own body tissues, where they can be associated with inflammation. Because it can affect multiple other organs of the body, Rheumatoid Arthritis is referred to as a systemic illness and is sometimes called rheumatoid disease.

Causes
Increased intake of indigestible, heavy and incompatible foods; having food at improper times; indigestion; intake of milk and milk products, especially yogurt; intake of meat of aquatic animals; lack of physical activity or doing exercise after having fatty foods are some of the common causes of Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Symptoms
• Thirst
• Swelling
• Indigestion
• Lethargy
• Pain and stiffness in the body
• Heaviness in the body
• Sometimes lack of appetite
• Pain and stiffness in the joints of the hands

Ayurvedic Rheumatoid Arthritis Treatment
Improper food habits and sedentary lifestyle can lead to impairment of digestive fire, formation of ama (toxin) and vitiation of Vata (air). When a person indulges in Vata-aggravating diet and lifestyle, then this aggravated Vata circulates ama in the channels of the body and deposits it in the joints, causing Amavata.

Ayurvedic treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis starts with pacification of Vata and elimination of toxins from the body. Herbal medicines are administered to improve the digestive fire and prevent further formation of ama. Panchakarma massage therapies are quite useful in subsiding pain in Arthritic patients.

Diet & Lifestyle Advice
• Increase intake of barley flour, horse gram (a type of bean), split green gram, honey, celery seeds, cumin seeds, dried ginger root powder, garlic, bitter gourd and castor oil.
• Avoid eating fish and milk together or milk and jaggery together.
• Avoid incompatible, heavy, and oily foods.
• Avoid an improper diet and lifestyle, such as waking up late in the night, suppressing natural urges of the body, and getting direct exposure to cold winds.

Home Remedies
• Go for absolute fasting or rely on a liquid or semi-solid diet for an entire day, depending on your strength. You can follow this with hot fomentation (application of moist heat). This can be done by soaking cloth in warm water and giving a compress over the affected parts or steam bath or taking a bath with lukewarm water