Dear Readers,
Early this morning, Sam clicked on Pandora on his iPhone and Le Freak started playing. If you don't know that song, look on YouTube and watch the 'Freak Out' video by Chic which was popular in 1978 when I was 13 years old. We must have healthy amygdalas because we remembered the lyrics which go like this: Aww freak out! Le Freak! Say Chic! Freak out!"
At some point, the beat overcame our sleepiness and we both started to do a little bed dance, complete with hip gyrations, but not in the way you are thinking. (Stop thinking that, this is a family-friendly column!)
So anyway, Freak Out is playing and we are gently moving to the groove. It's kind of sweet. Three minutes pass and not a giggle, not a word, just moving, barely awake. My mind drifts back to an awkward high school dance with a guy I used to like.
Back to reality. Sam rolled out of bed and wobbled to the bathroom kind of like an 80 year old! He went from being super smooth under the sheets to decrepit in under 5 seconds and when I pointed this out, we cackled together! It dawned on me that bed dancing doesn't relieve joint stiffness, although it's a nice change from spooning.
Joint stiffness and pain are no laughing matter. An estimated 52.5 million adults in the United States were told by their doctor that they have some form of arthritis, whether it is rheumatoid arthritis, gout, lupus, or fibromyalgia. You want more flexibility and less pain and stiffness. I think yoga is the fastest, safest way to achieve this. The following is a list of options, but they do have interactions. In the order they fall out of my brain here goes:
SAMe- It's short for S-adenosylmethionine and you produce this. Taken as a supplement it supports joint health and relieves pain. If you take too much or you have bipolar disorder because it may cause feelings of anger, or symptoms of mania or hypomania. Dosing with this incredible supplement is key to reaping rewards.
Boswellia- I call this dietary supplement Mother Nature's Celebrex. It's an inhibitor of 5-lipoxygenase, so it reduces leukotriene production and human leukocyte elastase (HLE). This makes it a strong anti-inflammatory with potential benefits for arthritis, ulcerative colitis, asthma, back pain, IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) and much more.
Vitamin C and B complex- It sounds too simple doesn't it? But combining Bs and C increases the elasticity of cell walls. This allows muscle cells to stretch further without tearing.
Proteolytic enzymes- These break down proteins in your food, turning them into amino acids and reducing inflammation and pain. Bromelain from pineapples or papain from papaya are two popular fruit-derived enzymes. Just FYI, meat tenderizer contains papain because it acts like a chemical meat mallet!
Glucosamine- Everyone has heard about this, it's a dietary supplement that helps prevent the break down of cartilage between joints.
