NEW TO THE FORUM,NEED SOME HELP OR ADVICE,FOUND OUT LAST WEEK I HAVE ARTHRITIS IN MY LEFT SHOULDER ( NON DOMIANT ).I HAD AN MRI,XRAYS AND CONSULTATION WITH A SPORTS MEDICINE DR.HE SAID THE CARTILIDGE THAT LINES THE GLENOID FOSSA IS VERY THIN AND THE GLENOID FOSSA IS NO LONGER CONCAVE SO THE HUMERUS NO LONGER RIDES TRUE.
HE ALSO SAID THAT IM AN USUAL CASE ,MOST OF THE SHOULDER PROBLEMS WITH PEOPLE MY AGE ( IM 52 ) ARE FROM ROTATOR CUFF/IMPINGEMENTS AND MINE ARE IN GREAT SHAPE. IM LOOKING AT SHOULDER REPLACEMENT SURGERY IN THE FUTURE. A LITTLE BACKGROUND ,I HAVE BEEN TRAINING FOR 37 YEARS.I WAS A COMPETITIVE POWERLIFTER IN THE LATE 70’S THRU THE MID 80"S.I HAVE A FEW QUESTIONS IF ANYBODY OUT THERE CAN HELP ME OR AT LEAST POINT ME THE IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION
1.WILL CHANGING MY DIET HAVE ANY EFFECT ON THE ARTHRITIS?ITS GOOD BUT NOT CLEAN.
2.SUPPLEMENTS-TAKING MSM CELEDRIN AND GLUCOSAMINE/CHONDROTIN ALONG WITH A MULTI, C, AND B COMPLEX.ANYTHING ELSE OUT THERE I CAN TAKE?
3.TRAINING-THERE ARE SOME MOVEMENTS I CANNOT DO.NO OVERHEADS. CHEST TRAINING ALMOST NON EXSISTENT AS WELL AS SHOULDERS.ARMS ARE OK AS LONG AS I ISOLATE OR USE VERY STRICT FORM.
THANKS FOR THE HELP!
Arthritis literally means “joint inflammation” in Latin. Anything with -itis on the end means something is inflammed. Most inflammation has something to do with cyclo-oxygenase or lipo-oxygenase although there are a host of other inflammatory mediators.
Diet can have a huge impact on inflammation. MSG is a well known pro-inflammatory compound as is hidden in numerous foods under other names. Doritos and the like are laden with MSG but it is called something else. If you google “MSG other names” or something like that you can find a list. I am speaking out my ass a bit but I think “modified food starch” is one the the legal labels companies can use to hide the fact their food is full of MSG.
One of the best dietary additives to reduce inflammation is omega 3 fatty acids. I wrote an article for a medical journal about 5 years ago on Omega 3 fatty acids and inflammation and a program director of a family medicine residency read it and its one of the things that helped earn me a spot in a family medicine residency.
Lipo-oxygenase (LOX) and cyclo-oxygenase (COX) are derived from another fatty acid called Arachidonic acid (AA). NSAIDS like aspirin, Tylenol, Celebrex etc all work by blocking the flow of AA into COX (that is why Celebrex was called a COX inhibitor). However in some people the remaining AA flows into the LOX pathway and increases their pain, and this is called paradoxical pain - they take “pain” pills like Tylenol but feel worse.
Omega 3 fatty acids (such as in fish oil) happens to compete directly with AA and as such blocks the conversion into both LOX and COX.
Adding 3-10 grams of fish oil a day and eating some salmon could help reduce the pain.
Certain foods are more likely to cause histamine mediated inflammation too - these are foods that are common allergens : soy, wheat, milk, etc.
I was diagnosed in 1994 with severe degenerative arthritis of the lumbar spine. I had severe pain and pain radiating down my left leg, ending and an area of my left leg was completely anesthetic (without feeling, completely numb). Disability was recommended for me. Embarrassingly I was a chiropractor at the time, and chiropractic adjustments from my colleagues did not help. I quit being a chiropractor - the bending over to adjust patients was killing me.
Near the end of the 1990’s a medical doctor put me on testo replacement and I started powerlifting moves with seriousness - not to compete but for presonal training. I had always lifted weights, but not the basics : squat, deadlift, bench press. Romanian deadlifts helped my low back immensely - which is what the physical medicine and rehab specialist told me to avoid.
I no longer have any low back pain, unless I overdo something like yesterday I was sitting on the ground weeding the front rocks for hours and my low back was stiff.
It is debated by some as to what comes first - joint injury/degeneration or inflammation. Many feel the inflammatory change comes first that causes the degeneration. Stopping the inflammation can stop the degeneration and that will allow some healing to occur.
Anti-inflammatories tend to stop inflammation anywhere, and as a result stop the end results of inflammation anywhere. Ex. Aspirin stops pain and inflammation in the joints, but it also lowers the blood vessel and platelet inflammation that causes clots with resulting heart attacks and strokes. So it can be used for both. It is now known that inflammation is a cause or a feature of cancer, and as such aspirin is an approved chemotherapy for some forms of cancer such as colon cancer (not as a preventative, but as a chemotherapeutic treatment).
So stopping inflammation is beneficial in many ways. Fish oils (or any omega 3’s) are very good for that in many ways. The American diet is typically low in Omega 3’s.
Those are just some thoughts.
I have no idea how much degeneration has occured, and even if I did I am not an orthopedist. But its possible, like my low back you could experience complete loss of the inflammation. My low back is basically pain free and pretty strong. Deadlifts of some sort are a weekly part of my work still, roughly a decade later.