|
<Back
| Home | Basics |
Departments | Get
Involved | Site Map | What's
New
Ask the Doctor
About Polymyalgia Rheumatica
By Tom Cowan, MD
Question: I have been suffering for a number of years
from muscle pain and weakness. The doctors say it is polymyalgia rheumatica.
Taking prednisone helps a lot, but I know this drug has side effects.
Is there anything that can be done for this condition besides just taking
steroids or pain killers?
Answer: Polymyalgia rheumatica is a disease that occurs
almost exclusively in people over 55 years of age. It is characterized
by profound stiffness in the muscles--as opposed to the joints,
as in rheumatoid arthritis--and severe muscle pain. Often there
is pain in the joints as well. The pain may be accompanied by weakness
and fatigue. The onset can be abrupt or it can creep up slowly over
a few weeks. Usually within those few weeks, the patient suffers immensely
from this condition.
The diagnosis of polymyalgia rheumatica is made on the basis of the
above symptoms plus a very elevated sedimentation rate. The sed rate
of the blood is a measure of the total inflammation in the body, and
with polymyalgia it often goes to very high levels.
The cause of polymyalgia is unknown in conventional medicine. It is
treated with high doses of the anti-inflammatory, adrenal hormone prednisone.
As our questioner points out, the relief with prednisone is very quick,
often within hours, and patients are usually grateful for this seemingly
miraculous treatment. The difficulty with prednisone, of course, is
not getting on it, but getting off it. Taking prednisone for prolonged
periods of time, including the time needed to treat polymyalgia, will
suppress the adrenal glands so much that it makes it very difficult
to come off these medications. I've seen it take two years or more to
successfully wean a patient off prednisone. During that time the well-known
side effects of prednisone come into play. These include diabetes, cataracts,
stomach ulcer, and many more. Clearly, another approach to this illness
is needed.
Whenever a steroid drug like prednisone makes a condition better, at
least temporarily, we can conclude that a basic cause of the condition
is poor adrenal function. Therefore, it is helpful to incorporate dietary
changes that support the adrenal gland. First and foremost is the elimination
foods that stress the adrenal glands, like sugar, caffeine and nicotine.
Then we must provide the raw materials with which the adrenal gland
makes its many hormones. These are chiefly cholesterol, vitamin C, vitamin
B6 and vitamin A. Raw milk products provide vitamins C and B6, and cod
liver oil and butter from grass-fed cows provide vitamin A. Third, we
can support the adrenal glands with adaptogenic herbs. These contain
certain saponins that the body can turn into cortisone-like substances--they
are called "adaptogenic" because they help the body adapt to stress.
The two I use in my practice are ginseng and licorice.
This type of adrenal support can help the condition of polymyalgia
rheumatica, but rarely does it completely relieve this illness. They
do help--the pain is lessened--but the much-needed remission
does not occur.
Recently, I have used a cleansing program to treat polymyalgia with
very positive results. Various fasting or cleansing approaches have
long been used for autoimmune and rheumatological diseases (such as
polymyalgia) and no one is certain why they help, but that they do help
is quite clear. In fact, this month's issue of Alternative Therapies
reports on six patients with a variety of serious autoimmune and rheumatological
diseases, all of whom went into remission after a 2-3 week water fast.
Interestingly, the patients stay in remission, often for many months
after the fast is completed, as though some change occurs in their organ
function which lasts even after the fast is completed. I have found
the same thing in my practice.
The two programs I have used are not so much fasting programs as they
are cleansing programs. The difference being that in cleansing programs,
the person takes in enough nutrients, fats and proteins to enable him
or her to carry out an almost normal life during the fast. One such
program is the Milk Cure described in the Summer 2002 issue of Wise
Traditions. Another is a cleansing program from Standard Process. Through
the Milk Cure, or through the herbs and powder of the Standard Process
program, the patient can remain nourished, but the limited food intake
allows the digestive system to rest, and the body to turn its attention
to addressing other imbalances.
The main component of the Standard Process cleansing program is a powder
that contains a small amount of whey protein and a lot of herbal extracts,
plus flax seed meal. The powder is mixed with olive oil and taken several
times per day. A supplement containing liver and detoxifying herbs is
also given as well as a green food extract or wheat grass. During the
fast, the patient can also eat raw fruits and vegetables and drink water.
After the three-week fast, I recommend a transition diet of bone broth,
raw butter, cooked vegetables and fruit, soaked grains, and sprouted
seeds and nuts. This fast should only be carried out under the supervision
of a qualified practitioner who is familiar with Standard Process products.
I have had dramatic results using the Standard Process program. Used
for polymyalgia, the pain and stiffness begin to recede and then disappear
completely. I have also had excellent results with psoriasis and rheumatoid
arthritis.
About the Author
 Thomas
Cowan, MD, is a physician in private practice in San Francisco, California,
a board member of the Weston A. Price Foundation, and a regular contributor
to our "Ask the Doctor" column. His book The Fourfold Path to
Healing is now available from NewTrends Publishing, http://www.newtrendspublishing.com/.
Visit Dr. Cowan's website at http://www.fourfoldhealing.com.
<Back
| Home | Tour
| Calendar | Contact
Us | Funding | Join
Now
|