You can control RA with diet.

Natural medicine is better for you than conventional medication.

We've all heard these statements. Sometimes it's from a well-meaning acquaintance, sometimes it's on a television program. We want to believe them. Searching for something — anything — that can help is normal when you live with a chronic illness like RA that has no known cure or and can be difficult to control. When people use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) or diet, the three most important expectations are "the hopes to influence the natural history of the disease, to prevent illness and to receive treatments free of adverse effects." (1) The big question is whether CAMs and diet can deliver on those expectations.

How do you assess if an approach is safe and effective? First, identify the goal. Whether it's alternative or conventional, the aim of any RA treatment is to suppress the disease and/or control the symptoms, such as pain and fatigue. Together, this leads to better health and better quality of life.

Research, Research, Research

Do a lot of research, read everything you can find about the particular diet or remedy. Remember that everyone has a bias, so consider the source of your information. For instance, a website that focuses on alternative medication is going to be more positive when evaluating such treatment. A website rooted in a conventional Western approach will likely lean towards recommending such treatments. In other words, don't take anything at face value, not even this post! Do your own research, find information from a variety of sources and approach your topic armed with a healthy dose of critical thinking.

One important part of critical thinking is finding research investigating the efficacy of a treatment. The best way to assess this is through clinical studies that use the scientific process to eliminate bias and statistics to analyze the result. This gives you an objective measure of the safety of the treatment in question. There hasn't been a lot of research into diet and alternative medication and their effect on RA. This is unfortunate, as it would give us a much better basis for making decisions. The studies that have been done have largely shown no effect on suppressing the disease, although certain remedies, such as fish oil, are supported by evidence as providing relief of RA symptoms.

Natural Medication is Medication

Many seek out alternative treatments that involve natural medication such as supplements and herbal medicine in the belief that they don’t have adverse effects. You may be aware of a recent story in the New York Times Magazine about a boy diagnosed with juvenile arthritis by a rheumatologist. An alternative practitioner stated he had leaky gut syndrome, which can be accompanied by joint pain. He was treated with diet and alternative. The story presents him as doing well without taking medication, but is this true? In fact, in addition to diet and probiotics, he is also treated with a remedy called four marvels powder.