Lupus is a fluctuating condition that affects women

 

Published November 2, 2002 in the North Island Weekender

 

Well everyone seems to be know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month but I wanted to bring to your attention naturopathic treatments for Lupus which is also the disease of the month for October. Does it count that I am writing this article in October?  Lupus is an autoimmune disease affecting women primarily between the ages of 15-45. As with most autoimmune disease there is not a single cause identified however naturopathic physicians see many causes that can be modified thus changing the course of this illness. Lupus tends to flare and then go in to remission and it can affect every organ system in the body including butterfly skin rashes on the face, joint, blood vessel and kidney inflammation, fatigue and cognitive and behavioral changes due to inflammation that affect the brain and the central nervous system. Standard medical treatment is limited to using drugs to reduce the inflammation. These include corticosteroids, non-steroidal anti-inflammatories, cytotoxic drugs such as methotrexate and anti-malarials. These drugs have many side effects however if a person needs to be on these, naturopathic medicines can be taken along with them to optimize this condition.

Doreen came into me asking for help with her lupus. She was 50 years old. She complained of fatigue, insomnia, pain, allergies and mood changes. She was taking Plaquenil, an anti-malarial drug, which was helping with her pain, but she wanted to

feel better. I started with the basics as I do with everyone. She wasn’t taking a good quality calcium magnesium supplement so we got her on morning and bedtime doses and this corrected some of her pain and helped her sleep. We got her off the nightshade foods such as potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant and green peppers. This helped her further in reducing her pain. Purified cod liver oil in a good dosage provides excellent amounts of essential fats such as EPA and DHA, that act as natural anti-inflammatories. Dairy, alcohol, beef and aspartame were eliminated from her diet along with wheat, a common allergen, as it also wasn’t good for her O type blood.

Standard anti-oxidant vitamins such as E, C and selenium are imperative as they act as anti-inflammatories as well. The adrenal vitamin is pantothenic acid. Adequate dosing of the above needs to occur for a therapeutic effect. Flaxseeds taken every day can prevent the kidney inflammation associated with this disease. With these few changes she began to feel remarkably better. I find this with most of my lupus patients.

 With the more difficult cases I give more adrenal support using herbs such as cordyceps, ligustrum and angelica. I also look at the hormone levels in these women. Often their estrogens are too high in relation to progesterone and their DHEA levels are low. These can be measured using salivary hormone testing. Blood sugars can often be poorly regulated in these patients and this sets up a state of general inflammation in the body. Toxicity and food allergies are important causative factors and these can also be measured with tests.

I encouraged Doreen to spend 15 minutes per day meditating. This has been shown to lower cortisol levels. Elevated cortisol levels are found with stress which makes lupus worse. Lupus may not be cured per se however the person with lupus can certainly make changes to their lifestyle and see their lupus go into remission for long periods of time.

 

Dr. Pincott has been practicing naturopathic medicine since 1985 and is currently practicing in Campbell River. She can be reached at (250) 286-3655 or www.DrPincott.com