-----Original Message----- From: [email protected] <[email protected]> To: [email protected] <[email protected]> Date: Tuesday, August 10, 1999 9:09 PM Subject: Re: CS>Improving!
To Susan and anyone else with rheumatoid arthritis, here is a message that a friend forwarded to me about a month ago. Hope you find it helpful,... Susan E. Date: Wed, 19 May 1999 01:01:00 EDT Subject: Fwd: Rheumatoid Arthritis & GLA to: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> In a message dated 5/18/99 11:13:48 PM Eastern Daylight Time, R Sweeney 98 writes:<<>Rheumatoid arthritis sufferers may have another treatment option. A one-year,>placebo-controlled trial conducted at the University of Massachusetts Medical>Center, focused on 56 patients between the ages of 18 and 90 with active>rheumatoid arthritis. They were given 28 grams of gamma-linoleic acid (GLA)>per day. For six months the patients were randomized to treatment groups. For>the following six months all patients were given GLA. GLA is an essential>fatty acid found in plant seed oils ,such as evening primrose and borage seed>oil.GLA has been found to control acute and chronic inflammation, including>arthritis, in several animal studies. For both six- month periods, treatment>with GLA significantly reduced rheumatoid arthritis symptoms. Measurements>of improvement>were based on a physician's overall assessment of the disease, the patient's>pain assessment, the number of joints with tenderness or pain, the number of>swollen joints, duration of morning stiffness and grip strength. The>researchers concluded that GLA at doses used in this study is a well-tolerated and effective treatment for active rheumatoid arthritis. However,>GLA is typically taken in doses much lower than what was used in the study.>The authors recommend further controlled studies on GLA's effectiveness in>the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs>(NSAIDs) are often recommended to treat the pain and inflammation of>rheumatoid arthritis. However, high doses of these drugs are associated with>side effects such as peptic ulcers, easy bleeding and bruising ,ringing in>the ears and fluid retention.Rheumatoid arthritis is considered an autoimmune condition in which>antibodies develop against components of joint tisues. Between one and three>percent of the population suffers from rheumatoid arthritis and women,are three times more likely to get it than men. The usual age of onset is20-40>years old although it may begin at any age. Symptoms include fatigue,low->grade fever, weakness, weight loss, joint stiffness, vague joint pain and the>appearance of painful, swollen joints with considerable inflammation. >Zurier RB, Rossetti RG, Jacobson EW, De Marco DM, Liu NY, Temming JE,White>-BM, LaPosata M: Gamma-linolenic acid treatment of rheumatoid arthritis: a>randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Arthritis & Rheumatism 39>(11):1808-18-7, November 1996; Murray M, Pizzorno J: Encyclopedia of Natural>Medicine, Revised 2nd Edition,. Rocklin: Prima Publishing, 1998 -- The silver-list is a moderated forum for discussion of colloidal silver. To join or quit silver-list or silver-digest send an e-mail message to: [email protected] -or- [email protected] with the word subscribe or unsubscribe in the SUBJECT line. To post, address your message to: [email protected] List maintainer: Mike Devour <[email protected]>
