Health and Fitness – Fitness Made Easy

Consult a doctor if you experience all or most of these symptoms for more than a week.

• Chronic fatigue unrelieved by rest.
• Unexplained chronic muscle pain or joint pain.
• Dry eyes and mouth.
• Fever
• Rash
• Mouth or skin ulcers
• Swollen glands

See a doctor immediately if you experience:

• Chest pain
• A seizure
• Shortness of breath

If  your like most people diagnosed with lupus,  the first thing that you’ll do when you leave the doctor’s is to look it up on the internet.

You’ll discover that Lupus Erythematosus-  the full name  -  is a complex autoimmune disease.  Autoimmune means that your body turns on itself  -  and in the case of  lupus,  inflames the blood,  kidneys,  skin and joints and other tissues and organs.

The Internet may or may not mention that nine out of  ten people with lupus are women,  and each women who has lupus will experience the disease in a very individual way.

For some people lupus begins with fevers and achy muscles or joints,  these symptoms are likely to persist throughout your life.  But lupus can affect other women with more sinister problems,  which include kidney,  blood and brain complications.

While there is no cure for lupus ,  it can be managed with medication and self – care.   The most important thing for people with lupus is good medical treatment.

HEALING WITH REST,  WRAPS  AND YOGA

Once you have been diagnosed with lupus,  there are a variety of strategies that you can use to manage it and keep it under control.  The best advice follows.

Brace painful joints  – Wrapping painful joints in an elasticized bandage may help keep down the swelling and relieve the discomfort.

Jump into a whirlpool or heat up the bath   – Many women find that they sleep better after spending  20  to  30  minutes in a  Jacuzzi or a hot bath.  The heat and swirling water soothe joints and muscles .

Try a vinegar – and – water soak  – I don’t know how it works,  but many people  insist  that soaking their aching hands in a basin of warm water with a few tablespoons of white vinegar relieves pain.  It might be from nothing more than the action of the warm water.  So it’s worth a try.

Alternate heat with cold   – Since every person experiences a different discomfort with lupus,  the treatment to relieve that discomfort will vary,  too.  Many people like heat packs over aching  joints or muscles,  while others prefer cold packs,  and some people get relief  by alternating between hot and cold.

Exercise:  YOGA    – Use a good Yoga  DVD and do it a few times a day, it is better to do it often than one long session.

Yoga not only works to stretch and strengthen muscles, but it can help you lessen pain by making you aware of what brings it on.

Learn your limits   – Each person will have there own limits.  Learn what triggers flare – ups and avoid those triggers.  For example,  people who are sensitive to the sun sometimes have flare – ups after being outside too long.  Others are prone to flare – ups under stress.

HOW DIET CAN HELP

If you have lupus,  a healthy diet,  built on the principles of the Food Guild Pyramid,  will strengthen the disease – fighting abilities of your immune system.

The food guide Pyramid is a nutritional plan calling for  6  to 11  servings of bread,  pasta,  cereal and other grain foods per day;  2  to  4  servings of fruit;  3  to  5  servings of vegetables;  2  to  3  servings of meat,  fish,  poultry or other protein foods;  2  servings of dairy products and a bare minimum of fats and sweets.

To help build your lupus -  fighting diet ,  try these additional tips.

Shun fat,  seek carbohydrates   – Make sure that your diet is low in fat  -  no more than 20%  of your caloric intake  -  and high in complex carbohydrates.  That means concentrating on bread,  pasta,  cereal  and other grain foods,   plus potatoes and starchy vegetables like carrots.

Count to ten  – If you have lupus,  it’s easy to fall into the routine of eating a few handy foods,  day in day out.  But you’ll fare better if you include at least 10  to  15  different foods every day to make certain that you get a broad range of nutrients.  Be sure to include five,  or better yet,  nine fruit and vegetable servings every day.  They’re rich sources of  beta -  carotene  ( a form of vitamin A  found in plant foods ) and other nutrients vital to strong immunity.  Since lupus is an immune disorder,  your body needs plenty of  foods that help strengthen the immune system.

Roberto Garcia (Health and Fitness Specialist)
http://www.newhealthandfitnessdvds.co.uk

Specialist provider of Health and Fitness information and products including: DVDs and Supplements.

Tags: Chronic fatigue, Chronic muscle pain, Immune system, Joint pain, Mouth or skin ulcers, Swollen glands

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 15th, 2010 at 2:42 pm and is filed under Fitness, Medical, Nutrition, Yoga. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.