Arthritis is a general term that describes inflammation in joints. Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis, affecting at least 20 million Americans.

The traditional medicine proposes to treat arthritis with pain relievers, exercise and applying warm compresses to the painful joints. Because these drug therapies have been around for at least fifty years and has a fairly high success rate, while many other remedies like dietary supplements are relative newcomers to the market.

Pain relief pills are not the solving the problem. They mask the symptoms by providing temporary relief and often worsen the disease. Otherwise, pain relief pills have side effects - most drugs prescribed for arthritis pain can upset the stomach and cause nausea and diarrhea. Sometimes, these drugs can compromise the wall of the gut and then the antigens leak into the system, enter the bloodstream and end up in a joint.

Once they reach the joint, they will trigger an attack by the white blood cells that are the body's defense system. The end result is that this causes more pain and inflammation as the white blood cells release prostaglandins and leukotrienes in an attempt to dispose of the enemy. They also release digestive enzymes that begin to attack and digest the actual cartilage, bone, ligament and muscle that are supposed to be saved. This can then become a chronic problem, which is what happens in rheumatoid arthritis especially.

Other pain relievers like aspirin take away vitamins from body - especially the B group - and minerals. Loss of these nutritions can cause the very same symptoms that arthritis causes. That is, pain and inflammation due to the breakdown of cartilage, bone and other important tissues.

Nonsteroid anti-inflammatory drugs like naproxen (Naprosyn), ibuprofen (Motrin) and others, give pain relief and reduce joint swelling, but cause stomach problems with long-term use, while the Cox-2 inhibitors like celecoxib (Celebrex) while safer for the stomach, may cause cardiovascular problems. Celebrex was FDA approved in l998 for the relief of signs and symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis in adults and in December 15, 2006 for juvenile rheumatoid arthritis on children. Celebrex is manufactured by Pfizer Inc.

Steroid medication causes a loss of potassium, but retention of sodium, while penicillamine, often used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, causes a lack of copper. Gout, the only form of arthritis scientifically shown to have a direct link to diet, is often treated with colchicine, which can cause a loss of vitamin B12. One longterm effect of steroid use is osteoporosis. To prevent this and other problems, steroids such as cortisone can be injected into the painful joint.

Disease-modifying and immunosuppressive drugs are sometimes given, but they have serious side effects too, so must be closely monitored. Some of these include: gold, sulfasalazine, penicillamine, cyclophosphamide, cyclosporin and minocycline by injection or orally and some other such as anti-malarial drugs.

Unfortunately, no matter what drugs or medicinal treatment you take, often the arthritis will be too far advanced for them to work. In this case, surgery is the only option available to you. The good news with surgery is that the success rate is extremely high, with the likes of hip replacements and knee joint surgery enjoying a success rate of 95 percent. If successful, these replacements can last anywhere up to fifteen years before needing replaced.

Educate yourself about arthritis. The more you know, the more you can control your recovery. If you have any questions or concerns, contact a physician or other health care professional before engaging in any activity related to health and diet.

For more information, call the Arthritis Foundation at (800) 283-7800.