The Arthritis Action Program: An Integrated Plan of Traditional and Complementary Therapies

START YOUR OWNARTHRITIS ACTION PROGRAM TODAY If you suffer from the aches and pains of osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, or related conditions like carpal tunnel syndrome or Lyme disease, this book will give you the latest information on managing and minimizing symptoms -- with results: New medications to control pain and inflammation Exercises to increase range of movement, improve balance, and minimize stiffness Complementary therapies that can help Tips on how to protect joints Techniques for stress reduction Breakthroughs in surgery Questions to ask your doctor Customized action programs that put it all together Periodic updates on our special Web site If you are among the more than forty-two million Americans who suffer from arthritis, you may think you know what you have to look forward to: pain, immobility...a premature old age. It's been like this for centuries. That might have been true for your grandmother. It might even have been true last year. But this is a new century, one that offers you a new and extraordinary opportunity to overcome this disease. For although no cure yet exists for arthritis, today's breakthrough therapies, innovative medications, and complementary treatments have the potential to banish forever the image of arthritis as a devastating and untreatable disease. Today, a combination of the newest painkillers, anti-inflammatories, exercise, stress reduction, nutrition, and complementary therapies enable most arthritis sufferers to lead active, pain-free lives. All of these come together in "The Arthritis Action Program," which presents a state-of-the-art team approach totreating this disease; and the team, in this case, consists of some of the finest physicians in the world: the experts at Harvard Medical School. They first offer you the latest information on joint protection: What sorts of recreational sports, shoes, and daily habits should you avoid? Next is critical news about early diagnosis, which is the key to slowing down -- or even stopping -- the progress of the disease. "The Arthritis Action Program" describes the symptoms that signal a visit to the doctor, and tells you the questions you need to ask when the visit occurs. It includes up-to-the-minute word on the newest headline-making medications: COX-2 inhibitors, TNF blockers, and disease-modifying immunosuppressants, as well as coverage of dramatic new surgical techniques that are less invasive...and more effective. Add to that a complete program of exercise to ease pain and extend joint mobility, information on complementary therapies from acupuncture to yoga, and the latest on supplements like chondroitin and glucosamine sulfate. The team approach even includes sample programs, easily customized for every reader. And "The Arthritis Action Program" will "always" be up-to-date with new discoveries posted on the Harvard Health Publications Web site, www.health.harvard.edu. It's the last book on arthritis that you -- or your grandmother -- will ever need.