ArthriPhase: New Advanced Arthritis Support Formula

Jim English

Arthritis is a generic term for more than 100 different disorders, such as osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gout and fibromyalgia. Osteoarthritis, or wear-and-tear arthritis, is the most prevalent and disabling of all chronic conditions, affecting approximately 80 percent of all U.S. adults over 65.

Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease involving the loss of articular cartilage, the smooth, slippery tissue that covers the ends of bones to allow them to slide smoothly across each other as joints bend and flex.

Osteoarthritis can be caused by a variety of conditions (diabetes) or as a result of age-related thinning of cartilage. Obesity, which exerts mechanical stress on knee joints, is a recognized risk factor for osteoarthritis. Additionally, physical trauma, surgery, sports and occupational injuries are important factors for developing secondary osteoarthritis.

Osteoarthritis begins as a normal inflammatory response intended to protect joint tissues. For reasons not fully understood, the process goes awry, leading to degenerative changes in articular cartilage that cause the tissues to soften and swell up, making the cartilage less resistant to compressive forces and more susceptible to normal stresses. Continued use of the joint further inflames the surrounding synovial membranes and irritates the cartilage, leaving the once-smooth surface covered with pits and crevasses that further compromise the affected joint. Eventually, articular cartilage can be completely stripped from the bones, necessitating joint fusion or surgical replacement with artificial joints.

Treatment Options for Arthritis
There is currently no cure for arthritis and conventional medicine has little to offer beyond exercise (to increase joint flexibility), weight control (to reduce physical stress on the knees), and over-the-counter (OTC) or prescription anti-inflammatory and painkiller drugs to aid in managing arthritic symptoms.

NSAIDs
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) continue to be the primary treatment options for arthritic inflammation and pain. Unfortunately, popular over-the-counter NSAIDs such as aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen, can cause stomach ulcers, GI bleeding and perforations when taken for extended periods. Additionally, NSAIDs block the synthesis of new collagen matrix, the body's main cartilage repair mechanism. By inhibiting this natural regenerative process, NSAIDs can temporarily dull pain and allow users to use their damaged joints completely unaware that they are actually speeding up the destruction of joint cartilage. In time, continuing joint damage exceeds the ability of NSAIDs to control pain, leading the patient to seek out more powerful analgesic agents.

COX-2 Inhibitors
The introduction of a new class of NSAIDs known as COX-2 inhibitors was initially hailed as a breakthrough in arthritic pain treatment due to their analgesic properties and a general lack of gastrointestinal side effects. COX-2 inhibitors work by reducing prostaglandins (chemical messengers) that cause pain and swelling. Unfortunately, COX-2 inhibitors also tend to increase risks of heart attacks and stroke by suppressing blood vessel dilation (vasodilation) and promoting formation of dangerous blood clots (thromboses).

Alternative Arthritis Options
Because of the risks associated with prescription and over-the-counter NSAIDs, use of alternative therapies, such as acupuncture, nutritional supplements and medicinal herbs, has risen sharply. Dissatisfied arthritis patients seeking nutritional support for arthritis have a wide range of choices, including natural compounds such as glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, MSM and SAMe. Still, many find that success can be a hit or miss affair, requiring both luck and trial and error to determine which combination of supplements is most effective. Additionally, as with drugs, use of some supplements may be contraindicated due to interactions with pharmaceutical medications (i.e., warfarin, antidepressant drugs) and degenerative diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.

A Natural Alternative for Safe Pain Relief
Concern over the side effects associated with conventional arthritis therapies has sparked a renewed scientific interest in traditional natural arthritis remedies. A review of leading Chinese and English language medical journals reveals a surprising number of recently published studies detailing new insights into the biological and biochemical mechanisms of Chinese herbs historically used to safely relieve arthritic inflammation, pain and swelling.

Drawing on this wealth of new data, a team of Chinese medical researchers developed a new, advanced multi-herb formula that demonstrates a range of benefits previously unobtainable from conventional or alternative arthritis therapies. This formula, ArthriPhase™, is now available in the United States.

While each of the 12 herbs comprising the formula has a long history of use in traditional Chinese medicine, the unique efficacy demonstrated by ArthriPhase relies on each of the ingredients working in concert with the others to act on multiple biochemical pathways to provide analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and circulatory benefits. Since ArthriPhase does not rely on a single chemical in large quantity, like a drug, to get results, it is also very safe to use. The following is a brief review of specific benefits as revealed in recently published studies.

Relieving Chronic Arthritic Pains
Chronic pain is one of the most difficult problems for those coping with arthritis. According to the CDC, arthritic pain is the nation’s leading cause of chronic disability, and nearly 19 million U.S. adults report that arthritic pain severely limits their daily activities.

While never pleasant, not all pain is bad. Short-term, acute pain serves as the body’s alarm system, warning us of danger (minor cuts, insect bites, etc) while enabling us to learn from potentially damaging experiences. By contrast, the long-term pain associated with arthritis is a fixed, constant presence that is almost impossible to control.

Arthritic pain begins when specialized receptors (nociceptors) are activated following damage to joint tissues. This activation results in the release of pro-inflammatory prostaglandins and cytokines (chemical messengers) such as IL-1 and TNF-alpha. These chemicals stimulate the release of additional inflammatory enzymes that further damage cartilage while blocking the body’s efforts to initiate repairs. As inflammation worsens, joint tissues swell up and begin to compress pain nerves, resulting in degenerative nerve damage that triggers the release of even more inflammatory cytokines directly into the nerve roots. Over time this process alters the very structure of pain cells, causing them to become sensitized to the constant stimulus (Fig. 1). This process results in a lowering of pain threshold that directly amplifies pain signals while increasing sensitivity to pressure and temperature. In other words, the pain persists even after the original painful stimulus is no longer present.

Inflammation-induced pain responds poorly to currently available analgesics, making new compounds capable of relieving chronic arthritic pain an important target of intensive drug development.

One of the most important subjects of ongoing drug research involves a type of cell structure called a sodium channel. By controlling the flow of ions into and out of pain receptors (nociceptive neurons) sodium channels play a key role in the generation of pain signals. Blocking these sodium channels inhibits the transmission of pain signals from the nociceptive neurons, resulting in a localized anesthetic action and subsequent pain relief.

Of the 12 herbs comprising the ArthriPhase formula, seven demonstrate significant analgesic activity in animal studies. These herbs – Gastrodia, Tang-kuei, Notopterygium, Cyathula, Angelica Dahurica, Aconite and Scrophularia – have all been shown in animal studies to act on nociceptive neurons and pain pathways to relieve pain and calm over-sensitized nervous systems.

Controlling Inflammation with ArthriPhase
Inflammation is the body’s front line defense against infection and damage. The five primary symptoms of inflammation – redness, heat, swelling, pain, and restriction of movement – are signs that the body is bringing in more blood and immune resources, such as white blood cells and macrophages, to remove microorganisms and other foreign matter. Redness is a sign that vasodilation is allowing more blood and other fluids to reach the affected area; local heat reflects the increased flow of warm blood from deep within the body; swelling (edema) is caused by the local accumulation of fluids; pain and restricted mobility arise from the added pressure caused by the swelling.

With osteoarthritis, inflammation is initially triggered either by trauma or irritation resulting from age-related damage to joint tissues. With the onset of inflammation the immune system responds by releasing additional pro-inflammatory factors (i.e., TNF-alpha, IFN-gamma, IL-1beta, IL-2, IL-4, LTB(4), and NO) that accelerate cartilage damage. In time the cartilage begins to degrade, shedding pieces of cartilage throughout the interior joint capsule. This new “foreign” material is, in turn, targeted for destruction by the immune system, further fueling the inflammatory response as the body struggles to eliminate the cellular debris. In time this process results in the eventual destruction of the joint.

Each of the herbs in ArthriPhase has been shown to exhibit potent anti-inflammatory properties. While specific mechanisms are unique to each herb (Table 1), the extraordinary balance of herbs in ArthriPhase exerts both short and long-term support for countering inflammation, dampening pain, reducing swelling and stiffness, and restoring cartilage integrity. Three herbs of special interest include Tang-kuei, Cyathula and Scrophularia.

Improved Joint Circulation
Arthritis results in impaired blood circulation to the joints, contributing to joint deterioration, cold sensations, weakness and stiffness. Advanced arthritis also inhibits ability to engage in physical exercise, further contributing to poor limb circulation. Arthritis-related changes to blood chemistry also increase risks of developing blood clots (thrombosis) in the veins and arteries, just the type of condition aggravated by COX-2 inhibitor drugs.

ArthriPhase contains several herbal ingredients shown to counter the negative effects of arthritic inflammation on circulation. One herb, gastrodia, has been shown to interact with human fibrinogen to act as a natural anticoagulant. By inhibiting interactions between fibrin molecules, gastrodia effectively inhibits the formation of arthritic-related thrombosis (blood clots) without interfering with normal clotting required for tissue maintenance.

In addition to improving blood flow to the joints, ArthriPhase’s circulatory benefits contribute to the overall safety profile of the formula, particularly when juxtaposed with the side-effects for conventional pain-killing and anti-inflammatory drugs.

Relaxing Joint Muscles and Supporting Collagen Synthesis
Arthritis causes painful swelling and stiffness that restricts joint movement. In time, limited movement leads to atrophy of the muscles surrounding the joints due to lack of use. Several herbs have been shown to relax arthritic joint muscles. Tang-kuei, in particular, has been shown in animal studies to exert a muscle relaxant effect to relax muscles and aid in restoring joint mobility.

Additionally, the herb eucommia has been shown to support recovery of joint mobility by promoting collagen synthesis. Researchers working with extracts of eucommia report that collagen synthesis was significantly increased when the herb was administered to laboratory rats raised to model age-related loss of joint cartilage.

Human Studies
In human clinical trials ArthriPhase has been shown to be highly effective in exerting a wide range of benefits, including anti-inflammatory, vasculoprotective, and immunomodulatory effects in arthritis and related diseases. In one study, 310 patients suffering arthritic joint pain received ArthriPhase for a period of 30 days. After only ten days, 70% of the patients reported marked reductions in primary arthritic pain. After 30 days, fully 50% of the patients had normal ESR (erythrocyte sedimentation rate) values. ESR is an important diagnostic test for measuring inflammation in arthritis. An increased ESR corresponds to increased non-specific inflammation in the body. Additionally, the blood test for rheumatoid factor (RF), a diagnostic marker for rheumatoid arthritis, had turned from positive to negative in 24 of 38 patients.

Immediate Benefits
The first benefit of the triple-acting ingredients is to provide quick pain relief. This fast-acting relief indicates that the analgesic, anti-inflammatory and circulatory actions are starting to reduce joint pain.

Long-Term Benefits
With continued use, people with arthritis can expect to see some long-term benefits when taking ArthriPhase daily for arthralgia in their joints. These improvements are also attributable to the triple-action benefits of the formula. In addition to enhancing comfort and flexibility, ArthriPhase users have also reported additional benefits, including memory improvement, normalization of blood pressure levels, and antispasmodic and sedative effects.

Short-Term Benefits
ArthriPhase supports restoration of healthy joint function while reducing pain, inflammation and swelling. The herbs in ArthriPhase contain multiple active ingredients that contribute to the overall benefits of the formula. The success of the formula relies on multiple beneficial actions exerted on many different chemical pathways to provide analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and circulatory benefits.