Arthritis is a general term used to describe more than 100 chronic diseases of the joints, bones, and muscles. The two most common types of arthritis are osteo-arthritis, a wearing away of the cushioning cartilage in the joints; and rheumatoid arthritis, an auto-immune disease that causes painful and often disabling joint inflammation.
Arthritis also includes a range of diseases that affect the muscles, connective tissues, and organs, such as fibromyalgia, lupus, ankylosing spondylitis, osteoporosis, scleroderma, gout, and Lyme disease. Symptoms can range from pain and stiffness in a few joints to serious and severe damage to many joints and internal organs.

The symptoms and seriousness of arthritic diseases vary widely. It can be a mild condition that can be controlled with over-the-counter pain relievers — or it can cause severe pain and inflammation that can drastically change your life. Left untreated, some forms of arthritis can be life-threatening.
You may have heard arthritis referred to as rheumatism: the terms are used interchangeably by some people today, and arthritis specialists are still called rheumatologists.

Arthritis strikes almost twice as many women as men, but rheumatic diseases can attack people of any age or race, and of either gender. Many children have arthritis, and almost everyone over the age of 60 eventually gets some kind of wear-and-tear osteoarthritis.

Arthritis is second only to heart disease as a cause of work disability, There is no cure for most types of arthritis. That said, many forms of arthritis respond to a wide range of conventional treatments, self-care techniques, and alternative therapies. If you have arthritis, you don’t have to face a life of pain; you can live a normal life.
Modern medicine does not have much to offer for these chronic conditions, only symptomatic, temporary relief. Painkillers and the so-called NSAIDs, non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, are effective in reducing symptoms quickly but often cause serious side effects such as ulcers and gastrointestinal bleeding, and they do not stop the progression of the disease. In the long run they have actually proven to worsen the condition by accelerating joint destruction.
Even "stronger" drugs such as corticosteroids, gold salts, and methotrexate are often prescribed for RA in an aggressive attempt to stop the development of the disease. These drugs are all aimed at alleviating pain and reducing inflammation. They can sometimes be effective, but more often, however, they prove unsatisfactory even intolerable due to toxicity. Aspirin, for example, which is the most commonly used, is quite effective, but it often causes gastric irritation and tinnitus (ringing in the ears) with the high dosages needed. Other NSAIDs may be somewhat better tolerated but have an even greater risk for serious side effects. These treatments are only symptomatic, because they do not act on the causes of arthritis and do not stop the progression of the disease. In fact, the opposite has proven to be true. It has been demonstrated in many studies that NSAIDs actually have an inhibitory effect on cartilage repair and accelerate cartilage destruction

Regular exercise is the best way to keep mobile.
Lose weight to help weight bearing joints such as hips, knees, and the lower part of the spine.

A good diet is very important: avoid red meat, alcohol, acid forming foods, eat a lot of oily fish ( such as Mackerel, herring, salmon) increase food that are rich in minerals (green beans for example) foods that promote detoxification (dandelion, artichoke, radishes) and foods that are diuretic (onions, leeks cucumber). Try also a daily glass of fresh pineapple juice with a tablespoon of freshly grated ginger.
See the diet suggestion on the detox programme

New research indicate that wheat and dairy product are best avoided.

Glucosamine sulphate: it helps people with osteoarthritis by encouraging the formation and repair of cartilage, the body tissue which cushions the ends of bones within joints.
Green Lipped Mussel : Mucopolysaccharides are the active component of mussel extract which help combat rheumatoid arthritis, and oseo-arthritis.
Herbal remedies: Devil claws, Feverfew and Nettle extract are well known for their good anti-inflammatory action

Alternative medicine: is excellent for long term management of arthritis, the most effective treatment are:

Acupuncture: immediate effect on pain and inflammation, reduces stiffness, increase mobility

Herbal medicine: good for the long term, no side effect, treat both stiffness and inflammation

Homeopathy: gentle effect, combines well with acupuncture