Rheumatoid Arthritis
Side Effects of TNF Blockers: Enbrel, Humira, Re…
Most drugs are double-edged swords. In other words, they have the potential both to help and to harm. But some medications have sharper blades than others. TNF blockers are great examples of this deal…
Do Your Drug’s Benefits Outweigh Its Risks?
We are always surprised that medications seem to be held to a much lower standard than any other product or service. Why do healthcare professionals and patients willingly accept such poor performance…
Show 1358: Upsides and Downsides of Immune-Modif…
This week’s radio show features one of our favorite guests, Dr. Robynne Chutkan. She is a gastroenterologist in Washington, DC and is a brilliant communicator. You may want to listen to it through y…
TNF Blockers and Your Immune System: Beware IMID…
Your body is constantly seeking balance. Think of it as a finely tuned seesaw. This is especially true for your immune system and a key player called tumor necrosis factor or TNF. Some of the most luc…
What Is the Alternative to Grape Juice and Pecti…
Arthritis, joint pain and inflammation and rheumatism have plagued human beings since prehistoric times. Possibly as a result, there are more home remedies for arthritis than you could count easily. T…
Show 1341: Lessons Learned from Long Illness
You may not have thought much about long illness, but chances are you know someone who is suffering with one. The CDC estimates that some chronic condition afflicts as many as one in six American adul…
Drug Price Gouging Is Immoral
Are you angry about the ever-escalating cost of medicine? Here are some examples you may not be aware of. Humira (adalimumab) is highly advertised on TV. It is used to treat Crohn’s disease, ulcerat…
Are You An Activated Patient? Engage Now!
For far too long the health care system has been out of balance. Physicians have been at the top of the pyramid. Patients were relegated to the bottom. It is time we changed the paradigm! Engaged and …
Show 1300: How Vitamin D and Omega-3s Help Your …
In our nationally syndicated radio show this week, we consider the benefits of two dietary supplements against autoimmune diseases. Although health care providers are sometimes skeptical about the val…
Preventing Autoimmune Diseases with Vitamin D an…
Autoimmune conditions can be hard to treat. They include disorders such as polymyalgia rheumatica, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, thyroid disease, lupus and inflammatory bowel disease. These illness…
Xeljanz XR Side Effects and Complications for Tr…
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a challenging autoimmune disease. For reasons that remain mysterious, people with RA are the victims of an assault by their own immune system. Bones and joints are especia…
New Nasty Warnings for RA Drugs Rinvoq and Xelja…
What’s wrong with the FDA? On the one hand, the agency just issued scary new warnings for two popular rheumatoid arthritis (RA) drugs. On the other hand, it allows commercials for these drugs that m…
Will Prednisone Reduce Vaccine Effectiveness?
Researchers have established that the vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 work very well. They rev up the immune system to recognize the virus. Then immune cells go into action, producing antibodies and preve…
Scary Side Effects of Immune-Modulating Drugs
Immune-modulating drugs have revolutionized the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease and several other hard-to-treat conditions. Examples include: Actemra, Cimzia, …
Show 1270: How Your Microbiome Shapes Your Immun…
In the middle of a pandemic, you probably want to know how well your immune system is functioning. Even more important, what if anything can you do to support it? Scientists have found that the microb…
Why Would Anyone Swallow Gold for Arthritis?
Many physicians probably don't know how their older colleagues used to treat rheumatoid arthritis. Aspirin-like drugs (salicylates) were considered the drugs of choice back in the 1970s and 1980s. If …
Will an Allergen-Free Diet Help Your Joint Pain?
Would you like to find a way to reduce or control your joint pain? One of the fundamental principles for people with arthritis is to keep moving, but that can be hard when your knees creak or your hip…
Can You Believe FDA’s Drug Safety Claims?
How do you define the word safe? We suspect that most people would start with a synonym such as harmless. Others might say free from risk or danger. The FDA’s drug safety claims, however, may includ…
People with Lupus Need Scarce Hydroxychloroquine
People with lupus and rheumatoid arthritis are worried. Speculation about the possible benefits of hydroxychloroquine against COVID-19 have led to serious shortages. While the effectiveness of this ol…
Flip Flops on Fish Oil: Omega 3 Fats Now Have He…
Are you fed up with flip flops? The latest U-turn on dietary supplements has to do with omega 3 fats. There was a time when Americans were told that little golden footballs containing some kind of fis…
Why Are People Having So Much Fun on Drug Commer…
Have you ever watched prescription drug commercials on television? It’s hard NOT to. They have proliferated like weeds after a spring rain. There’s Chantix to stop smoking, Vraylar for acute mania…
Are Gin-Drenched Raisins a Big Joke?
Whoever said "Getting old isn't for sissies" certainly got it right. As we age, we often accumulate aches and pains that may be attributed to arthritis. People with arthritis are faced with a horrible…
FDA Boss Infuriates Patients with Drug Safety Tw…
Dr. Scott Gottlieb is the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration. That means he is the top cop when it comes to all our medications. Dr. Gottlieb stirred up a lot of excitement on Valentine…
Meloxicam for Pain | This NSAID is NOT a Narcoti…
We are not huge fans of NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) for arthritis pain. That’s because arthritis is a chronic condition that requires long-term treatment. When you take an NSAID da…
How Are Vitamin D and Rheumatoid Arthritis Linke…
Vitamin D (the sunshine vitamin) is essential for good health. Human beings can make this hormone when skin is exposed to sunlight. In addition, vitamin D is found in a few foods: oily fish (and espec…
What Makes Turmeric So Wonderful?
A few years ago most Americans had never heard of turmeric. If they had, they thought of it as an exotic ingredient in curries and other Indian dishes. Now, turmeric and curcumin, one of its active in…
Humira Side Effects, Complications and Interacti…
Humira (adalimumab) is the best selling drug (in dollars) in the U.S. (and around the world). Sales were listed between $13 and $16 billion in 2016. That is an unbelievable amount of money for a singl…
How to Ease RA Pain with Fish
Should you eat a sardine sandwich or tuna salad for lunch if you have rheumatoid arthritis? Surprisingly, fish on the menu might ease RA pain and joint inflammation. Fighting RA Pain with Fish: Resear…
High Drug Prices Shielded by Soaring Lobbying Bu…
Wonder what's behind high drug prices? Have you ever heard the crude expression: "Money talks and bulls**t walks." We apologize for the obscenity. But nowhere is that crude phrase clearer than on Capi…
Are There Reasons Not To Follow Your Doctor̵…
The phrase "doctor's orders" often means doing something because a physician says to do it. These days that usually that means swallow a certain pill. Noncompliance or Nonadherence? Doctors have a nam…
What Is the Link between Gum Disease and Rheumat…
Periodontal disease has been associated with heart problems. Now investigators find that such gum infections may also be tied to the autoimmune condition rheumatoid arthritis. What Is the Connection? …
Patients Want Doctors to Look at Them, Not the C…
If you have seen a doctor in the last several years, the chances are good that he or she has entered your data into a computer during the visit. Electronic health records have become ubiquitous in hea…
How Do You Make Gin-Soaked Raisins?
Q. I have heard you talk about the raisin remedy on your radio show and I have seen reference to it on this website, but there are a lot of details that are missing. First, how the heck do you soak th…
Lymphoma as a Side Effect of Remicade
It can be difficult to weigh the benefits against the risks of medicines that are used to treat dreadful conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. On the one hand, having a way to ease pain and permit …
Modest Mercury Levels Linked to Autoimmune Condi…
Pregnant women have long been warned to avoid eating fish high in mercury, such as tilefish, king mackerel or swordfish. That is because methylmercury can interfere with nervous system development in …
Enbrel & Remicade Side Effects & Compl…
Autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis can turn moving into misery. These conditions are far worse than aching joints; in some cases, they can be crippling. For cer…
Will Sunshine Protect You from Rheumatoid Arthri…
Exposure to sunlight has been linked to a number of health benefits, including a reduced incidence of some cancers. New research suggests that ultraviolet light exposure may also cut the risk of rheum…
Gum Disease Linked to Risk of Rheumatoid Arthrit…
Brushing and flossing daily could help ward off rheumatoid arthritis, according to a new study. Rheumatologists in Minnesota studied more than 6,000 people between 1987 and 1998. Everyone had at least…
Old Fashioned Treatment Is Good As Gold
Rheumatoid arthritis patients have been on a roller coaster the last couple of years. Their potentially debilitating disease still remains mysterious, and promising treatments have turned out to have …