Gotukola & Arthritis
Gotu Kola and Arthritis
Gotu Kola Tea - Arthritis has been recognised as the single, largest identified cause of disability and handicap in Australia, now affecting over 2.6 million people. It is an inflammatory condition of the joints (which can be of the fingers, wrists, elbows, shoulders, hips, knees, spine and toes) with symptoms of pain, swelling, stiffness and deformity. It may appear suddenly or come on gradually, with a toothache-like pain or sharp burning or grinding pain.
There are many different forms arthritis can take. Osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint disease is related to the wear and tear of ageing, and involves the deterioration of the cartilage, at the end of the bones. The once-smooth cartilage becomes rough, resulting in friction.
Tendons, ligaments and muscles, holding the joints together, become weaker, and there is severe pain, stiffness and deformity. Rheumatoid arthritis, an auto-immune disease, is inflammation affecting the synovial membranes. Cartilage and tissue, surrounding the lubricating fluid in the joints, can be destroyed. The body replaces this damaged tissue with scar tissue, causing the spaces between the joints to become narrow, to develop folds and to fuse together. There is stiffness, swelling, anemia, weight loss, and often crippling pain, with loss of mobility to carry out normal activity, which means the quality of life becomes greatly reduced.
Gout can be classed as another form of arthritis, which attacks the smaller joints of the feet and hands, depositing crystallised uric acid salts in the joints causing swelling, redness, a sensation of heat and extreme pain. People, who wished to be free of these painful, debilitating diseases, have taken the herb. After a period of weeks to months, they usually experience a lessening of pain and disability: some report a complete cure.
