Testimonial

“In 2003 I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis – swollen joints and stiffness getting out of bed. After attending a rheumatologist for four years I felt very frustrated as nothing I was given seemed to work. I had got to the stage where I was self-injecting and that didn’t even work.

My husband read an article in the Sunday World Magazine about The Amber Centre in Mullingar and was so impressed by what he read that he asked me to read it and suggested that I quickly ring for an appointment. That was then and this is now, I am a new person thanks to Alma Green and the staff of The Amber Centre.

Alma told me I had a severe sinus infection, (I had forgotten to mention I suffered from sinusitis and hay fever for years) and had been on four (at least) antibiotics a year for same. This was the result of being allergic to dairy products. She also told me I had an allergy to lamb, which I absolutely loved. Now I just do not eat it.

Alma treated me for one year but I saw great results and didn’t have any problem travelling from Galway to Mullingar. My life changed thanks to The Amber Centre, Mullingar.”

Catherine – Co. Galway

“I was an ambulance driver and had to retire owing to excema and back pain i put in a terrible few years in that time a friend of mine told me about her sister having simular problems and got great results from the amber centre in mullingar i though i will try anything to get help so thanks to alma and her team in the centre i got great results and got completely cleared of the excema of my body that was six years ago now again in the last year i got artritus in my hands the became swollen and disfigured i went back again to the amber centre and thank god again i have had great results after four months of treatment i can now play my guiter and my hands are back to normal i am very greatful for the help from alma at the amber centre.”

sean gallagher – bundoran

What is Arthritis?

Arthritis is a group of conditions involving damage to the joints of the body. Arthritis is the leading cause of disability in people older than fifty-five years.

There are different forms of arthritis and each has a different cause. The most common form of arthritis, osteoarthritis (degenerative joint disease) is a result of trauma to the joint, infection of the joint, or age. Emerging evidence suggests that abnormal anatomy might contribute to the early development of osteoarthritis. Other arthritis forms are rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis, autoimmune diseases in which the body attacks itself. Septic arthritis is caused by joint infection. Gouty arthritis is caused by deposition of uric acid crystals in the joint, causing inflammation.

Causes

Some of the risk factors that can cause arthritis include:
• Illness or Infection
People who experience a joint infection (septic joint), multiple episodes of gout, or other medical conditions, can develop arthritis of the joint.
• Allergies
For some people certain foods can cause severe arthritis symptoms and once these foods are eliminated from the diet the arthritis goes away.
• Genetics
Exactly how much heredity or genetics contributes to the cause of arthritis is not well understood. However, there are likely genetic variations that can contribute to the cause of arthritis.
• Age
Cartilage becomes more brittle with age and has less of a capacity to repair itself. As people grow older they are more likely to develop arthritis.
• Weight
Because joint damage is partly dependent on the load the joint has to support, excess body weight can lead to arthritis. This is especially true of the hips and knees that can be worn quickly in heavier patients.
• Previous Injury
Joint damage can cause irregularities in the normal smooth joint surface. Previous major injuries can be part of the cause of arthritis. An example of an injury leading to arthritis is a tibial plateau fracture, where the broken area of bone enters the cartilage of the knee joint.
• Occupational Hazards
Workers in some specific occupations seem to have a higher risk of developing arthritis than other jobs. These are primarily high demand jobs such as assembly line workers and heavy construction.
• Some High-Level Sports

It is difficult to determine how much sports participation contributes to development of arthritis. Certainly, sports participation can lead to joint injury and subsequent arthritis. However, the benefits of activity likely outweigh any risk of arthritis.

Arthritis Symptoms

There are more than 100 different kinds of arthritis, these are the most common types and their symptoms:

Osteoarthritis Arthritis
Osteoarthritis / Osteoarthrosis (OA, also known as degenerative arthritis, degenerative joint disease, arthrosis or in more colloquial terms “wear and tear”), is a condition in which low-grade inflammation results in pain in the joints, caused by wearing of the cartilage that covers and acts as a cushion inside joints. As the bone surfaces become less well protected by cartilage, the patient experiences pain upon weight bearing, including walking and standing. Due to decreased movement because of the pain, regional muscles may atrophy, and ligaments may become more lax. OA is the most common form of arthritis.

Rheumatoid Arthritis
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is traditionally considered a chronic, inflammatory autoimmune disorder that causes the immune system to attack the joints. It is a disabling and painful inflammatory condition, which can lead to substantial loss of mobility due to pain and joint destruction. RA is a systemic disease, often affecting extra-articular tissues throughout the body including the skin, blood vessels, heart, lungs, and muscles. About 60% of RA patients are unable to work 10 years after the onset of their disease.

Gout Arthritis
Causes sudden, severe attacks, usually in the big toe, but any joint can be affected. A metabolic disorder in which uric acid builds up in the blood and crystals form in joints and other places.

Ankylosing Spondylitis Arthritis
A chronic inflammatory disease of the spine that can result in fused vertebrae and rigid spine. Often milder and harder to diagnose in women.

Juvenile Arthritis
The most common form is juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis diagnosis, treatment, and disease characteristics are different in children and adults. Some children recover completely; others remain affected throughout their lives.

Psoriatic Arthritis
Bone and other joint tissues become inflamed, and, like rheumatoid arthritis, it can affect the whole body. Affects about 5 percent of people with psoriasis, a chronic skin disease. Likely to affect fingers or spine. Symptoms are mild in most people but can be quite severe.

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
Involves skin, joints, muscles, and sometimes internal organs. Symptoms usually appear in women of childbearing age but can occur in anyone at any age. Also called lupus or SLE, it can be mild or life threatening.

Septic arthritis
Septic arthritis is the invasion of the joint space by an infectious agent which produces arthritis. The usual etiology is bacterial, but viral, mycobacterial, and fungal arthritis occur occasionally. Bacteria are either carried by the bloodstream from an infectious focus elsewhere, introduced by a skin lesion that penetrates the joint, or by extension from adjacent tissue (e.g. bone or bursae).

Prevention

Nutritionists suggest that a vegetarian diet low in animal products and sugar may help to decrease both inflammation and pain from arthritis. Beneficial foods for patients with arthritis include cold-water fish (mackerel, herring, salmon, and sardines) and flavonoid-rich berries (cherries, blueberries, hawthorn berries, blackberries, etc.).