Alternative Health: Are There Natural Methods of Treating Inflammation & Autoimmune Diseases?

Ever since I became ill several years ago with a mysterious illness that doctors couldn't seem to diagnose, let alone treat, I've been interested in alternative medicine. I have spent thousands of dollars on various vitamins, supplements, organic and natural foods, and other treatments. A majority of the products that I bought did help to improve my condition, but unfortunately there were some that were a big disappointment. When I learned from doctors who were treating my lupus that my sed-rate, which is how doctors measure the amount of inflammation in the body, was sky-high, I started searching for natural alternatives to corticosteroids, since the Plaquenil wasn't doing much and there was talk of starting me on corticosteroids. I've had relatives who had no-so-nice side-effects from taking corticosteroids long-term, so I wanted to do everything I could to prevent myself from having to take them. I didn't want to become like my mother-n-law, who was dependent on insulin in order to control extremely high blood sugar levels caused by prednisone-induced diabetes. I also didn't want to experience any of the other potentially serious side-effects of corticosteroids. After a great deal of research, I came across several websites that claimed that their products could reduce inflammation as well as minimize the various symptoms of autoimmune diseases in general. I wanted to try the products one at a time so I could easily determine what worked and what didn't.

I took Serrapeptase enzymes for a full six months, and according to manufacturers, it was supposed to clean the blood, prevent blood clots, decrease inflammation and boost the immune system. My doctor checked my sed-rate again after the six month period, and to my dismay, my sed-rate had actually increased from 88 to 100! I was very shocked and disappointed. I knew that I hadn't noticed a difference in how I felt physically, but I wasn't sure if perhaps the enzymes were helping yet I just hadn't noticed a difference yet. After receiving my disappointing news, I did not purchase any more of the product and began to research other natural treatments for lupus and the inflammation the often accompanies it and other autoimmune diseases.

After a disappointing trial of the systemic enzymes, I tried Barlean's Fish Oil. I was told that this was a really good brand that doesn't become rancid easily and is highly absorbable. After taking the recommended dosage of Barlean's Fish Oil, I must admit that I noticed a small decrease in my overall pain. The more I took the fish oil, the more my pain improved. After taking the fish oil for 3 months, however, my pain returned full-force, leaving me feeling disappointed again.

When my pain returned after trying the fish oil, I tried Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), which is supposed to minimize the overall symptoms of lupus. I took a really good brand that I purchased from a local health food store, but like the other products, I noticed no lasting improvement in my lupus symptoms.

I'm sure that there are natural products available that actually do help with inflammation and other problems related to autoimmune diseases. These products may not have been successful for me, but perhaps if I had taken them for a year or longer I would have noticed an improvement, but I wasn't willing to keep buying the various products for that period of time without noticing even a modest improvement. Perhaps other products will prove to be more successful, but right now I'm simply focusing on a healthy diet, multivitamins, prescription medications and incorporating exercise into my daily regime. I would like to be able to eventually get off all of my prescription medications, but at this time, I'm not sure that there are any natural products that can replace prescription medications when it comes to treating lupus and similar illnesses. A doctor referred me to an alternative nutritionist, stating that he "cures" people of lupus all the time by placing them on gluten-free, dairy-free diets in addition to using other tactics. I tried the gluten-free, dairy-free diet for 2 - 3 months, and I must admit that I did feel somewhat better, however following such a strict diet, which would have to be for a lifetime, is pretty difficult unless there was an absolute guarantee that I could really "cure" my lupus.

References

DHEA & Lupus - http://healingdeva.com/dhea.htm

Inflammation Health Page - http://www.inflammationandhealth.com/

Natural News Inflammation Page - http://www.naturalnews.com/024711_inflammation_oil_fish.html