Working with Back Pain
If you have difficulty sitting for long periods of time, or deal with chronic joint pain, take a look at some new ideas to mend stressed joints faster. According to the Center for Disease Control 1 in 5 adults in the US (that’s 52.5 million people) and 300,000 kids under 18 have some form of arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis or rheumatic condition. And the estimates are going up each year. The CDC projects that another 15 million Americans will join the ranks by the year 2030.
When Joint Pain Doesn’t Go Away
If you have joint pain that doesn’t go away, consider one risk factor your doctor may not have told you about. When a persons immune system is running low, the risk is higher for developing a fungal form of arthritis. There’s a tiny chance of this happening by meds contaminated with fungus microbes. Which is what happened in September 2012, causing a multi-state outbreak of rare fungal meningitis and fungal arthritis.
But what’s far more likely among the millions of people who suffer with chronic joint pain, are the millions of prescription antibiotics dispensed and consumed in the US today. Broad spectrum antibiotics lay out a warm welcome for fungal overgrowth in all the mucous membranes of the body, including those that makeup the soft lining in all your moveable joints.
What is fungal arthritis?
Fungal arthritis is inflammation of a joint by a fungus microorganism that has invaded the body and is growing in the soft synovial membrane of the joint. Fungal infection of a joint is a serious condition that can lead to permanent damage to the joint with loss of function.
What causes fungal arthritis?
Fungal arthritis is caused by a fungal organism (Candida, Aspergillus, or Exserohilum species) traveling through the bloodstream to set up camp in the joint. Whether encouraged by infection through the blood or injection through a contaminated instrument or medication, fungal arthritis can be the result. Some risk factors for elevating fungus levels in the body are use of broadspectrum antibiotics, chronic emotional stress, repeated use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory meds (Ibuprofen, Relefin, Naproxin) and a high sugar diet.
The Vital Role of Mucous Membranes to An Inflammation Free Body
Your immune system is only as healthy as your mucous membranes. They bear the tremendous task of keeping the outside world out of your bloodstream and keeping your inner cosmos running smoothly... including your moveable joints. They are your frontline of defense against invaders in the food, air and water you take into your body.
Mucous membranes or "mucosa," line the inside of cavities that open directly to the outside world. Mucous membranes line the gastrointestinal tract, respiratory tract, reproductive tracts and the urinary tract. The outer or epithelial layer of the membrane is an important defense mechanism that prevents the entry of pathogens and microbes into the body. The cells are tightly packed together, so fluid cannot leak out through the epithelial layer.
Specialized cells secrete mucous to keep the membrane moist. Mucus also traps dust particles in the respiratory, or lung passage ways and lubricates food as it travels through the intestinal tract. Got the idea?
The largest mucous membrane extends the entire surface area of the gastrointestinal tract. Women have slightly larger surface area in their intestines than men, but either is said to cover half a tennis court in surface area if stretched out completely flat. That’s a pretty huge track of land inside you with potential for imbalance, inflammation and variation in permeability to occur, and that’s just the gut.
Alterations in the permeability of this membrane produce food allergies when partially digested food particles enter the bloodstream half digested. The skin covering the outside of your body is the second largest semipermeable membrane and also serves as a filter to allow skin to breathe but keep all the essential parts of you in, and larger particles from the outside world like pet dander, synthetic fabric fibers and surface microbes out.
The fact that all of these membranes are semipermeable means they’re designed to allow some nutrients to pass, while locking other elements out. You can see that if the spaces between cells in any filtering membrane become abnormally large, then larger particles will be permitted to enter and allergy to the environment (animals, pollens, fabrics, etc) develops.
The next largest mucous membrane extends through the upper and lower respiratory systems including ears, nose and throat and the lower respiratory tract from the neck down. Breaches in the permeability of this membrane bring about respiratory allergies like hay fever and asthma. You can probably begin to name symptoms yourself for the inflammation created by mucous membrane imbalance in the urinary tract (UTI’s, cystitis) reproductive tract as well.
So hug yourself right here and thank your mucous membranes for doing what they do everyday to keep you well.
Joint Pain, What’s Mucous Membrane Got to Do With It? (Que Tina Turner)
What’s the mucous membrane that’s responsible for all this joint pain then? Well, all of your moveable joints have a soft tissue lining (mucosa) located between the joint capsule and the joint cavity called the synovial membrane. This same kind of membrane also lines moveable tendon sheaths and bursae, and it secretes a juicy synovial fluid, which fills the joint cavity and lubricates the joint. But if this mucosa becomes inflamed, infected or impinged, we call it arthritis (inflamation of the joint).
The Surprise
The surprise in all this is that fungal arthritis may be far more common than anticipated a decade ago. If you’ve done a dance with chronic back pain, or any other joint pain, and have not found satisfactory relief yet, consider a 30 day challenge to the potentially overgrown fungus residing in your mucous membranes. If the thought of fungus growing inside your body grosses you out, step back a minute and consider that everyone on the planet, including the robustly healthy among us has a limited number of yeast/fungi living in the mucous membranes of the body. Friendly bacteria, an alkaline diet and a peaceful existence all serve to keep the friendly organisms in control. But, any one of 8 different risk factors can upset the balance and tip your chemistry in favor of fungus.
Symptoms of Fungal Arthritis
The infection sometimes occurs as a result of an infection in another organ such as the lungs, and tends to get worse very slowly. The large joints like knees and hips are most often affected. People with weakened immune systems who travel or live in areas where lots of people suffer from similar symptoms (an ‘endemic area’) are more susceptible to most causes of fungal arthritis. Fungal infection elsewhere in the body can affect digestive, respiration, skin problems, allergies and fatigue… all in addition to joint pain.
First Aid for Stressed Muscles and Joints from Tumtree
Among the broad Tumtree family network, the following have been beneficial when a sprain, pull or slipped joint makes it hard to walk or even move.
- Keep the Bowel Going – When a spinal disc slips, take 1-2 teaspoons Exodus mixed in juice or water. If you’re uncomfortable enough, doing an overnight GI cleanse with Exodus is recommended. Each bowel movement will bring another leap forward in relief to your back.
- Cut the Carbs – Avoid all sweets and anything that spikes insulin until the area heals. Elevated insulin means elevated inflammation, and sweet also feeds fungus.
- Kill the fungus – If this isn’t your first go round with slipped joints, consider stepping up to a 30 day Reboot to alkalize and restore balance to all your mucous membranes. Your satisfaction is always guaranteed, or your money back.
- Megadose Glutamine – Glutamine cuts recovery time for muscle repair whether the muscle is being regenerated due to strenuous exercise or there’s been a formal injury. Torn, pulled or sprained muscles and ligaments respond noticeably to leveling up your glutamine stores. For more on the benefits of supplemental Glutamine, click here.
- Supplemental calcium not only aids in the repair of injured joint components but is an acid buffering mineral that has an alkalizing effect on the body. It’s also known as ‘natures anesthetic’. Take double the daily RDA for a few days to feed the need for this alkalizing mineral.
- Deep tissue massage on a muscle in spasm and applying heat may also bring relief. For a sprain, elevate the injury for the first few hours and send loving thoughts to the sight. Icing has not been a beneficial factor in this system. If your doctor has other suggestions, certainly take them into consideration.
The Buzz on Back Pain:
I got a level 2 calf muscle tear while playing basketball. The doctor said at least 6 to 8 weeks for recovery. I began taking glutamine the evening of the injury and continued taking it twice a day. The next morning I could only put about 5% of my weight on the leg and was set in for a long recovery process. By 48 hrs later I noticed dramatic recovery and on day four walked about four miles. Within one week my recovery is at about 95%. I would recommend Feel Good Foods Glutamine to anyone who is in need of quick muscle recovery, especially from an injury like mine. -- Rich Preim, Bend OR
This past Fall I experienced the worst back pain of my life, it felt like a slipped disc. I couldn’t stand, sit, or move comfortably. After only 1 tablespoon dose of your Glutamine my back felt relieved. I continued taking a tablespoon morning and night through the week and not only did my back feel 100% better but my shoulder, 2 months post surgery, showed improvement as well. – Helen Porter, Mapleton, UT
My daughter suffered with dizziness, stomach pain and back pain for 6 months. We did every test, scan, and diagnostic doctors could think of. Nothing helped. My friend told me about your Reboot product and I gave it to my daughter. Within 1 week she felt much better and after the Reboot is now back to her normal self. Thank you! – Sheila B. Bend,
I did the Reboot from Feel Good Foods and lost 6 pounds during the first week. Since the cleanse I’ve continued using Glutamine regularly and now have my energy back from my 30’s. I used to be tired, brainfogged and extremely sore from just an hour of mild work like cleaning out the garage and end up having my back pop out, putting me down. With Glutamine I do not have any more problems with popping my back or soreness at all! I can now be active all day and still function normally the next. …and there was much rejoicing! - Derik West Logan, UT
Using your products has helped so many issues in my family. However, the most dramatic result was from chronic joint pain in my wrists. I had horrible pain in both wrists for four years. I couldn’t push myself out of bed in the morning or bend my wrists at all. I had an MRI and the doctor found cysts in between the joints. I started on the Reboot protocol from Feel Good Foods and within a month, four years of pain was gone. I no longer have any pain in my joints. A few months ago, my hips started to ache. Once again I started on your products and the joint pain went away. Too many people live with joint pain and blame it on old age or something incurable. You don’t have to live with joint pain! - Shari Goodman, Gilbert AZ
To learn how 30 Day Reboot works to mend your aching joints, browse Frequently Asked Questions. Get to the root of your joint pain… and back on track.
Hi, I'm Jonell Francis, an expert in Leaky Gut Syndrome, a nerd when it comes to the science of feeling fabulous, and obsessed with guiding women (and those they love) back to vibrant health.