Ancient Technique Prevents Strokes in Those with Arthritis?
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is no joke. The ceaseless bone-deep throbbing. Stiffened joints. Hands clawing closed or feet refusing to shuffle forward.
Each ordinary task suddenly requires monk levels of patience.
And let’s not forget about the endless pain meds and steroids that leave your gut uneasy.
But here’s the icing on the cake—as if things weren’t bad enough, folks with RA face a heightened stroke risk due to chronic inflammation running rampant in their body.
If you’ve had enough of taking useless pills and living in pain, you’ll want to learn about this ancient technique.
It shows promise in, not only providing joint relief, but also reducing your stroke risk.
Promising new research found that RA patients who received acupuncture after their diagnosis had a 43% lower chance of eventual stroke versus non-acupuncture patients.
And this benefit occurred despite similar medication use and health conditions.
Now, doctors know arthritis involves painful joint inflammation, and they usually treat it with pain medications or steroids to calm immune overactivity.
But the same runaway inflammation also silently damages blood vessels over time—eventually leading to clots which block the arteries that send oxygen to your brain.
Somehow acupuncture’s light pressure point stimulation dials down the inflammation. And, as a result, folks experience a reduced stroke and greater mobility.
Though the mechanisms remain unclear, researchers suggest acupuncture may, not only ease inflammation, but also improve regulation of proteins that drive the hardening of your arteries. (Perks like better sleep and stress reduction after needling sessions likely boost these vascular benefits, too.)
Still, the fact that acupuncture lowered stroke risk significantly, without any other therapies, deserves attention. The findings come from analyzing over 20,000 arthritis patients who either got acupuncture or not after their initial diagnosis.
So, if you’re struggling with RA, consider seeking a license acupuncturist for some much-deserved relief.
To RA relief and preventing strokes,
Rachel Mace
Managing Editorial Director, e-Alert
with contributions from the research team
Sources:
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-02-acupuncture-curb-heightened-rheumatoid-arthritis.html
