Alisha Bridges has lived and thrived with psoriatic disease for over two decades. She is a blogger and health advocate who strives to inspire others with her story of living with a chronic condition. She shares insights and helpful tips from her experiences and holistic approaches to help manage her chronic condition.
Psoriatic Arthritis occurs when your bodyâs natural defense mechanism, better known as the immune system, does too much too fast and for no reason at all. Itâs when your body has a hard time distinguishing healthy cells from invaders and mistakenly attacks healthy joint tissue.
Turmeric root or powder is a burnt orange color we typically see as turmeric comes from a plant in the ginger family, which grows in parts of Asia and Central America. Many individuals with Psoriatic Arthritis use turmeric anti-inflammatory supplement as a holistic approach to alleviate symptoms of Psoriatic Arthritis. Do you understand how it works in the body? First, letâs examine the immune system and its role in causing Psoriatic Arthritis.
Itâs a complicated process, but your immune system contains proteins which work together to protect you from millions of illnesses and infections. When an intruder such as bacteria enters the body, these proteins send out warning signals to various cells in your immune system, which work together to destroy the trespasser. In a normal immune system when a burn or cut occurs to the body the immune system is activated, blood vessels to grow to allow immune cells to travel to the area to promote healing which causes short term inflammation.  Your immune system defenses includes:
*Absorbs and eats âintrudersâ
*Removes dead cells
*Heals wounds
*Helps the skin to heal and regenerate new skin cells
*Remembers previous âintrudersâ and sends warnings to the immune system when/if they reinvade the body
*Destroy cells infected by intruders
*Increases body temperature (fevers destroy unwanted âintruders)
*Increases inflammation response (Inflammation is an indication of increased white blood cells which protect the body from âintruders.â)
However, when you have Psoriatic Arthritis your immune system responds as if the body under attack, even when it isnât. The immune system canât differentiate your healthy cells from foreign invaders. The faulty immune signal causes the proteins and cells in your immune system to react as if your body has been invaded by an âforeign intruderâ such as a bacteria or virus, thus causing an overactive inflammatory response or chronic inflammation in the body. Evidence of chronic inflammation and symptoms of active psoriatic disease in people who have Psoriatic Arthritis include:Â
- Swollen fingers and toes. Psoriatic arthritis can cause a painful, sausage-like swelling of your fingers and toes. It may lead to swelling and deformities in hands and feet before having significant joint symptoms.
- Foot pain. Psoriatic arthritis can also cause pain at the points where tendons and ligaments attach to your bones â especially at the back of your heel (Achilles tendinitis) or in the sole of your foot (plantar fasciitis).
- Lower back pain. Some people develop a condition called spondylitis as a result of psoriatic arthritis. Spondylitis mainly causes inflammation of the joints between the vertebrae of your spine and in the joints between your spine and pelvis (sacroiliitis).
How can turmeric help Psoriatic Arthritis?
The solution to relieving the annoying and painful symptoms of Psoriatic Arthritis is to target the parts of the immune system responsible for causing the overreactive activity. Turmeric anti-inflammatory supplement is a holistic approach proven to help alleviate the symptoms of Psoriatic Arthritis including inflammation and joint pain.
According to the National Psoriasis Foundation (NPF), curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric has been shown to help reduce inflammation in the bodyâmeaning that it has a lot of potential to help people with Psoriatic Arthritis. A study published in the October 2017 issue of the European Journal of Pharmacologyfound that curcumin demonstrated an anti-psoriasis affect in helping to reduce the inflammation caused by psoriatic arthritis. A study published in the January-February 2013 issue of BioFactors, Journal of International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology found that curcumin works in several ways to help improve a number of inflammatory diseases.
Turmeric traditionally used in curry dishes, works by lowering levels of certain enzymes in the body that cause inflammation. Â Curcumin, the potent active ingredient in turmeric, has been studied extensively for its strong anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory activities when used as a remedy for prevention and treatment of chronic inflammation-based diseases such as Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis.
The Arthritis Foundation reports the studies that show that turmeric and curcumin has anti-inflammatory properties and modifies immune system responses. Studies have shown turmeric is effective and helping reduce joint inflammation. Since curcumin represents only about 2 to 6 percent of turmeric, Randy Horowitz, MD, medical director of the University Center for Integrative Medicine in Tucson advises to check the standardized amount of curcumin.
The Nuvothera Super-Micronized⢠Turmeric Curcumin is different from most brands in several ways; most turmeric anti-inflammatory supplements simply pass through the body but are not absorbed. However, the Super-Micronized⢠Turmeric Curcumin has maximized absorption qualities. Nuvothera turmeric goes through a micronization process, which reduces the average diameter of the solid material particles, making the turmeric more potent by reducing the size so small that it is actually efficiently absorbed by the body. The Nuvothera Super-Micronized Turmeric Curcumin is over 100 times more potent than competitors.
Researchers have extensively studied the health benefits of turmeric. According to a 2015 review article, curcumin, one of the main active compounds in turmeric has anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties that benefit people with inflammation. Turmeric has been clinically shown to help improve symptoms of psoriatic disease and could be an effective natural anti-inflammatory supplement solution to help improve the symptoms associated with psoriatic arthritis including joint stiffness, discomfort and pain.
