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potassium for rheumatoid arthritis
- Charles E. Weber (26 January 2003)
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Charles E. Weber, retired 1908 Country Club Road, Hendersonville, NC, 28739, USA
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I would like to persuade you to use your influence to get an experiment performed testing potassium supplements against rheumatoid arthritis that has never been done. In view of the extensive prescription of potassium these days for heart disease and hypertension, potassium would lend itself to epidemiological surveys as well. If not an actual trial, at least make sure that potassium and magnesium is uniform and adequate in your other experiments so as not to introduce “noise” into the experiment. I have discovered that when the low cell potassium always present in rheumatoid arthritis [LaCelle PL et al 1964 An investigation of total body potassium in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Proceedings Ann. Meeting of the Rheumatism Association, Arthritis & Rheumatism 7; 321] is relieved, the disease is dramatically alleviated, perhaps cured. You may see an article on this subject entitled; Potassium in the etiology of rheumatoid arthritis and heart infarction. 1974 The Journal of Applied Nutrition 26:41. There is a much more elaborate current version starting at; http://members.tripod.com/~charles_W/arthritis.html I believe that I have also figured out how and why potassium deficiency disrupts the copper metabolism such as to produce some of the most dangerous symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis via the elastin tissue published as; Copper response in humanoid arthritis. 1984 Medical Hypotheses 15:333. There is a much more elaborate version starting at; http://members.tripod.com/~charles_W/copper.html . This disruption may be part of the reason for strokes which result from ruptured blood vessels. I also believe I have figured out how and why the immune system is inappropriately activated by decline of cortisol, discussed in; Cortisol's purpose. 1998 Medical Hypotheses 51:289-292. There is a much more elaborate version starting at; http://members.tripod.com/~charles_W/cortisol.html The regulation of electrolytes by steroids is closely involved in the potassium metabolism and I am virtually certain that I have the main features in regard to how at least four steroids regulate potassium and sodium published in; Corticosteroid regulation of electrolytes. 1983 The Journal of Theoretical Biology 104: 443-451. An up to date version at; http://members.tripod.com/~charles_W/electrolyte.html Do not be mislead into thinking that potassium is seldom deficient merely because foods almost always contain some. It often is. Indeed most people eat less than barely enough to maintain optimum cell potassium even in young healthy adults who are under no stress (2000 mg.), and Afro- Americans eat much less. If serum potassium is less than 4.8 meq/liter there is less than optimum and below 4.0 starts to get dangerous. Potassium blood tests must be made quickly in order to avoid incorrect high results. I have several case histories to back up potassium’s importance and one from the literature performed for other reasons than potassium [Clark WS et al 1956 The relationship of alterations in mineral and nitrogen metabolism to disease activity in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis. Acta Rheum. Scand. 2; 193], but no one has ever performed a controlled experiment yet. You may also see a summation of potassium and copper nutrition at; http://members.tripod.com/~charles_W/potassium.html and a discussion which suggests ways of reducing too high a blood potassium level by diet for those who have damaged kidneys at; http://members.tripod.com/~charles_W/blood.html which last may prove useful to you. If the researcher would like to perform a preliminary experiment by increasing potassium intake by diet, suggest that he read; http://members.tripod.com/~charles_W/arthritis9.html If you think that potassium could not be possibly having an affect on arthritis, I ask you this; is it possible that no intake of potassium from none at all up to overwhelming amounts could be having an affect on arthritis at all? If there is a possibility, then this long overdue experiment should be performed And if it turns out that low intakes are having deleterious effects, it will be a real feather in your cap to have helped establish it even if the effects were to prove to be only moderate. I have found the affects are so consistent that even increasing the potassium intake of only 2 or 3 patients 3,000 mg. per day to total 5,000 mg would be convincing. Please try to have this easy experiment performed. Just make sure that magnesium and maybe inositol is adequate at the same time since they help power the electrolyte pumps. Competing interests: None declared |
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