Side effects and clean diet?

[beebs]

I was told to come onto this site by my old GP who is wary of medications etc. I am supposed to be starting Methotrexate – for condition unknown at this stage. Some type of AI arthritis, possibly psoarcic or RA, but the rheumy doesn’t know which one. I am negative on all tests, and have so many AI symptoms – all difference types that feature in all kinds of disease.

Anyhow – my arthritis is spreading and has changed the shape of two of my joints, after 6 years, my rheumy thinks its time to try methotrexate. I am so scared about it, the side effect list, terrifying.

I just wanted to know a little about the dark skin that the anti bs can cause? Does that happen with everyone?

Also – did anyhow undertake a clean diet? No grains, just fruit, veg, and meat but no red meat? Did it help? I am gluten free due to being coeliac anyway. It seems like such a huge undertaking. I am 34 years old, have 4 kids under 5, and have been having AI symtpoms for as long as I can remember – the arthritis I can pin point starting about 24. The fatiuge is awful, and I have to sit down all the time, Its not even pain, I just feel so heavy and exhausted all the time. Does that sound familiar?

[dixiegirl]

I have something for you…
I tested positive for a gluten allergy myself, but then found out through a saliva test that I was also allergic to casein (dairy protein) and soy protein and egg protein and oat protein… long list I know! I have read that many people with celiacs also develop allergies to milk first and often soy or eggs or something else second.
Why I am telling you all this is because my allergies cause my joints to swell. If I eat even the tiniest bit of one of these foods, within hours, my joints will start to swell and reach the point of pain before subsiding in the next few days (3-7 days). I was diagnosed with RA before I realized that food was causing so many of my problems, including joint swelling, muscle fatigue and weakness, and general fatigue.
Because you know you have a problem with gluten, I cannot recommend strongly enough that you test yourself for other allergies to proteins, like gluten. The MD I went to strongly believes that allergies can cause autoimmune processes and my life is a living testament to this! Through the years, you may have developed other allergies that now cause your joints to swell even worse. Try a 10-day juice fast, maybe the Master Cleanse diet. If your symptoms start to improve, food is definitely a factor in your arthritis. I am not on any drugs and food has kept me to the point of amazing mobility for a person with RA.
The great thing is that there are no side effects to changing your diet and eating healthier food! 🙂 Test yourself for delayed response allergies and I hope you might find that if you avoid a few select foods you will feel amazing. I know it isn’t the case for everybody, but God has totally changed my life and avoid sooo much pain by helping me realize I needed to simply change my diet.
Good luck to you!

[dixiegirl]

Oh… and I want to know about the side effects of AP too. I’m thinking about doing it myself, but deathly scared of splotches on my skin. I’m 19 yrs old! I don’t want that. 😐

[crowchez]

Everyone is different, but I’ve been on minocycline for a year now (100mg bid MWF) & don’t have any splotches. From my reading, it can be more likely at higher doses for longer periods of time. It’s also been posted here that taking vitamin C can help prevent them from forming. As Maz has explained it, some splotches have been biopsied & found to contain high levels of iron (makes sense since the tetracyclines bind to minerals). Taking vitamin C helps the iron not settle where it does’t belong. So of all the things to worry about, I’d move this way down on your lists. 🙂

And welcome to Road Back!

[beebs]

I have a referral to get tested for over 400 different food allergies/intolerances. Apparently there is only one place that does it and I will have to travel 3 hours each way. But I don’t mind. I am very stressed about the methotrexate and will try anything to stay off it.

I really don’t have a year to play with though. I am a semi professional musician – and the arthritis is in my hands now. Anyone ever taken methotrexate and started anti b therapy and it worked for them? Maybe coming off the Methotrexate after 6 months or something?

[PhilC]

@Ruffian wrote:

I had to stop antibiotics this past week and a half because I developed Tinnitus and Minocycline is linked to that. (2% develop it…it’s on the ototoxic list).

You might want to try 50 mg instead, or 100 mg MF instead of MWF. The last time I took mino was on Thursday, and I didn’t experience noticeable tinnitus that time, so perhaps it’s a “side effect” that will go away eventually. I suspect that some of the adverse reactions to antibiotics are not really medication side effects, but actually “side effects” of the poisons released by dying bacteria. If the tinnitus is being caused by bacterial toxin(s), then it should eventually go away after enough of the bacteria are killed off. If not, then there are several other antibiotics that could be used instead.

@Ruffian wrote:

I wish I could find a supplement with the benefits of Mino. (goldenseal, oregano oil, H2O2, olive leaf) <—-?? anyone know ??

The problem with that approach is that you would be entering “uncharted territory.” You would be conducting an experiment on yourself rather than following a method that has been proven to work.

Phil

"Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth."
- Albert Einstein

[DragonSlayer]

Hello, beebs:

Does that sound familiar?

It sounds exactly like AS.

Which two joints are deformed?

Well, we can start:

Age of onset is right, along with diagnostic puzzle. A B27 test could help, only if positive, however.

Do You have IBS/digestive issues?
Are the pains asymmetric or symmetrical?
Have You ever had iritis?
Or plantar fasciitis?
Are there X-ray changes to Your SIJs?
Do You awaken with ‘morning stiffness’ that relents upon hot shower or movement?
Are Your pains cyclic or constant?
Do NSAIDs seem to relieve the pains?
Noisy joints (crepitus)?
Have You ever had some degree of hypermobility?
Any blood relatives been diagnosed with chronic UC, AS, PsA, RA, or any other chronic inflammatory disease?
When You eat, must You drink much more than ‘normal’ people?
Dry eyes (common conjunctivitis), parched often–thirst?
Any common or intermittent psoriatic lesions–scaly or pustular?
Any ‘sausage digits?’ Toes?
Pain at the ‘core’ of Your body so You cannot turn at the waist so easily without feeling like You have a cactus for a spine?
Trouble getting up from a seated position?
Night sweats?
Ribcage pain, especially at sternum?
History of pneumonia?

There are few differences between specific diseases in the spondyloarthropy group, even ReA (as these are all unclassified Reactive Arthritides).

I have never had any trouble with skin discoloration due to antibiotics, but that would be the very least of my complaints–yellow teeth-check, other problems…not so much. Careful for allergic reactions.

If AS fits, I highly recommend Carol Sinclairs book “The New IBS Low-Starch Diet,” with foreword by Professor Alan Ebringer.

Good Luck in Your quest for HEALTH,
John

[beebs]

@DragonSlayer wrote:

Hello, beebs:

Does that sound familiar?

It sounds exactly like AS.

Which two joints are deformed?

-one on my second toe and my left hand little finger – middle joints on both

Well, we can start:

Age of onset is right, along with diagnostic puzzle. A B27 test could help, only if positive, however.

-Negative for A B27

Do You have IBS/digestive issues?

-I am coeliac and am gluten free

Are the pains asymmetric or symmetrical?

Symmetrical mostly, but my toe came up red and swollen and agonising just one one side recently and that has happened twice.

Have You ever had iritis?

No, but I have had episcleritis which is similar and can be cause by AI diseases

Or plantar fasciitis?
I used to get bad pain down the bottom of my foot, I still get severe foot and calf cramps- agonising lasting for hours, I also got severe shin splints when I was 23 and it cause all sorts of problems. I have also had tendonitis in my achillies tendon in the past.

Are there X-ray changes to Your SIJs?

Does that mean joints? Slight changes in my hips – but haven’t been xrayed since and that was 3 years ago.

Do You awaken with ‘morning stiffness’ that relents upon hot shower or movement?

Morning stiffness or general sitting down and getting back up stiffness – has been for about 15 years, getting progressively worse.

Are Your pains cyclic or constant?

The stiffness and lack of movement in hips, knees and ankles are all the time, but the pain gets bad and not so bad. Especially in the cold and damp – which kind of sounds like osteo doesn’t it?

Do NSAIDs seem to relieve the pains?

Never tried NSAIDs – I’m too scared of the side effects

Noisy joints (crepitus)?

Badly – cricking and crackling every time I move.

Have You ever had some degree of hypermobility?

No

Any blood relatives been diagnosed with chronic UC, AS, PsA, RA, or any other chronic inflammatory disease?
UC? Ulcerative colitis??? PsA psoriatic arthritis? If so then no, my mother is Coeliac as my grandfather likely was.
RA – rheumatoid right? No RA in my family.

When You eat, must You drink much more than ‘normal’ people?
Yes
Dry eyes (common conjunctivitis), parched often–thirst
Yes – I scored 0-0 on the schirmers test. I basically have all of the symptoms of Sjogrens’ but negative bloods, I also have so many other issues that I guess my rhuemy is wary of putting me in one box?

Any common or intermittent psoriatic lesions–scaly or pustular?

I have Psoriatic nails (ie psorasis in my finger nails)

Any ‘sausage digits?’ Toes?

No

Pain at the ‘core’ of Your body so You cannot turn at the waist so easily without feeling like You have a cactus for a spine?

I have stiffness in my spine, stiff and cricky neck and lower back pain not associated with injury and pain in my buttocks which I was told was associated with the very bottom of the spine.

Trouble getting up from a seated position?

No

Night sweats?

Have done in the past

Ribcage pain, especially at sternum?

Have had pleurisy twice in the last year

History of pneumonia?

No, but lots of chest infections, before I went gluten free I was sick every week. Those kind of flu/cold infections have settled since though.

There are few differences between specific diseases in the spondyloarthropy group, even ReA (as these are all unclassified Reactive Arthritides).

I have never had any trouble with skin discoloration due to antibiotics, but that would be the very least of my complaints–yellow teeth-check, other problems…not so much. Careful for allergic reactions.

If AS fits, I highly recommend Carol Sinclairs book “The New IBS Low-Starch Diet,” with foreword by Professor Alan Ebringer.

Good Luck in Your quest for HEALTH,
John

[beebs]

@DragonSlayer wrote:

Hello, beebs:

Does that sound familiar?

It sounds exactly like AS.

Which two joints are deformed?

-one on my second toe and my left hand little finger – middle joints on both

Well, we can start:

Age of onset is right, along with diagnostic puzzle. A B27 test could help, only if positive, however.

-Negative for A B27

Do You have IBS/digestive issues?

-I am coeliac and am gluten free

Are the pains asymmetric or symmetrical?

Symmetrical mostly, but my toe came up red and swollen and agonising just one one side recently and that has happened twice.

Have You ever had iritis?

No, but I have had episcleritis which is similar and can be cause by AI diseases

Or plantar fasciitis?
I used to get bad pain down the bottom of my foot, I still get severe foot and calf cramps- agonising lasting for hours, I also got severe shin splints when I was 23 and it cause all sorts of problems. I have also had tendonitis in my achillies tendon in the past.

Are there X-ray changes to Your SIJs?

Does that mean joints? Slight changes in my hips – but haven’t been xrayed since and that was 3 years ago.

Do You awaken with ‘morning stiffness’ that relents upon hot shower or movement?

Morning stiffness or general sitting down and getting back up stiffness – has been for about 15 years, getting progressively worse.

Are Your pains cyclic or constant?

The stiffness and lack of movement in hips, knees and ankles are all the time, but the pain gets bad and not so bad. Especially in the cold and damp – which kind of sounds like osteo doesn’t it?

Do NSAIDs seem to relieve the pains?

Never tried NSAIDs – I’m too scared of the side effects

Noisy joints (crepitus)?

Badly – cricking and crackling every time I move.

Have You ever had some degree of hypermobility?

No

Any blood relatives been diagnosed with chronic UC, AS, PsA, RA, or any other chronic inflammatory disease?
UC? Ulcerative colitis??? PsA psoriatic arthritis? If so then no, my mother is Coeliac as my grandfather likely was.
RA – rheumatoid right? No RA in my family.

When You eat, must You drink much more than ‘normal’ people?
Yes
Dry eyes (common conjunctivitis), parched often–thirst
Yes – I scored 0-0 on the schirmers test. I basically have all of the symptoms of Sjogrens’ but negative bloods, I also have so many other issues that I guess my rhuemy is wary of putting me in one box?

Any common or intermittent psoriatic lesions–scaly or pustular?

I have Psoriatic nails (ie psorasis in my finger nails)

Any ‘sausage digits?’ Toes?

No

Pain at the ‘core’ of Your body so You cannot turn at the waist so easily without feeling like You have a cactus for a spine?

I have stiffness in my spine, stiff and cricky neck and lower back pain not associated with injury and pain in my buttocks which I was told was associated with the very bottom of the spine.

Trouble getting up from a seated position?

No

Night sweats?

Have done in the past

Ribcage pain, especially at sternum?

Have had pleurisy twice in the last year

History of pneumonia?

No, but lots of chest infections, before I went gluten free I was sick every week. Those kind of flu/cold infections have settled since though.

There are few differences between specific diseases in the spondyloarthropy group, even ReA (as these are all unclassified Reactive Arthritides).

I have never had any trouble with skin discoloration due to antibiotics, but that would be the very least of my complaints–yellow teeth-check, other problems…not so much. Careful for allergic reactions.

If AS fits, I highly recommend Carol Sinclairs book “The New IBS Low-Starch Diet,” with foreword by Professor Alan Ebringer.

Good Luck in Your quest for HEALTH,
John

[beebs]

@DragonSlayer wrote:

Hello, beebs:

Does that sound familiar?

It sounds exactly like AS.

Which two joints are deformed?

-one on my second toe and my left hand little finger – middle joints on both

Well, we can start:

Age of onset is right, along with diagnostic puzzle. A B27 test could help, only if positive, however.

-Negative for A B27

Do You have IBS/digestive issues?

-I am coeliac and am gluten free

Are the pains asymmetric or symmetrical?

Symmetrical mostly, but my toe came up red and swollen and agonising just one one side recently and that has happened twice.

Have You ever had iritis?

No, but I have had episcleritis which is similar and can be cause by AI diseases

Or plantar fasciitis?
I used to get bad pain down the bottom of my foot, I still get severe foot and calf cramps- agonising lasting for hours, I also got severe shin splints when I was 23 and it cause all sorts of problems. I have also had tendonitis in my achillies tendon in the past.

Are there X-ray changes to Your SIJs?

Does that mean joints? Slight changes in my hips – but haven’t been xrayed since and that was 3 years ago.

Do You awaken with ‘morning stiffness’ that relents upon hot shower or movement?

Morning stiffness or general sitting down and getting back up stiffness – has been for about 15 years, getting progressively worse.

Are Your pains cyclic or constant?

The stiffness and lack of movement in hips, knees and ankles are all the time, but the pain gets bad and not so bad. Especially in the cold and damp – which kind of sounds like osteo doesn’t it?

Do NSAIDs seem to relieve the pains?

Never tried NSAIDs – I’m too scared of the side effects

Noisy joints (crepitus)?

Badly – cricking and crackling every time I move.

Have You ever had some degree of hypermobility?

No

Any blood relatives been diagnosed with chronic UC, AS, PsA, RA, or any other chronic inflammatory disease?
UC? Ulcerative colitis??? PsA psoriatic arthritis? If so then no, my mother is Coeliac as my grandfather likely was.
RA – rheumatoid right? No RA in my family.

When You eat, must You drink much more than ‘normal’ people?
Yes
Dry eyes (common conjunctivitis), parched often–thirst
Yes – I scored 0-0 on the schirmers test. I basically have all of the symptoms of Sjogrens’ but negative bloods, I also have so many other issues that I guess my rhuemy is wary of putting me in one box?

Any common or intermittent psoriatic lesions–scaly or pustular?

I have Psoriatic nails (ie psorasis in my finger nails)

Any ‘sausage digits?’ Toes?

No

Pain at the ‘core’ of Your body so You cannot turn at the waist so easily without feeling like You have a cactus for a spine?

I have stiffness in my spine, stiff and cricky neck and lower back pain not associated with injury and pain in my buttocks which I was told was associated with the very bottom of the spine.

Trouble getting up from a seated position?

No

Night sweats?

Have done in the past

Ribcage pain, especially at sternum?

Have had pleurisy twice in the last year

History of pneumonia?

No, but lots of chest infections, before I went gluten free I was sick every week. Those kind of flu/cold infections have settled since though.

There are few differences between specific diseases in the spondyloarthropy group, even ReA (as these are all unclassified Reactive Arthritides).

I have never had any trouble with skin discoloration due to antibiotics, but that would be the very least of my complaints–yellow teeth-check, other problems…not so much. Careful for allergic reactions.

If AS fits, I highly recommend Carol Sinclairs book “The New IBS Low-Starch Diet,” with foreword by Professor Alan Ebringer.

Good Luck in Your quest for HEALTH,
John

[Author]

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