Diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis

[andyh]

Hello all, does ayone here have RA as well as type 1? I do and of late my ra has been quite bad, however the gold standard treatment for inflamed joints is steroids and case you don't know, it blows your readings out of the ball park for a while!

Someone advised me to give dairy a miss for a while to see if that has a positive effect on stiffness etc, can't hurt can it?

All the best to you all

Andy

Type 1 7 years now last hba1c 8.1

 

[catherinecherub]

Re: Diabetes ad rheumatoid arthritis

Hi andyh,
I know what you mean about steroids. Recently had two courses of them for a problem unrelated to diabetes. Sugar levels went into orbit on occasions.

Found this link to RA. It suggests that there may be a link to food intolerance and explains how to formulate an "Elimination diet". Hope you find it useful.

Http://www.arthritistoday.org/condition ... ergies.php

Catherine.

 

[donnellysdogs]

Re: Diabetes ad rheumatoid arthritis

Just an enquiry....you aren't on simvastatin or statins are you? These drugs that many type 1 diabetics are put on unecessarily can give horrendous results for rheumatoid factor and ANA tests, as well as LFT.

I was absolutely crippled for almost 9 years with taking statins, my rheumatoid factors showed as being 300+, when 14 is normal. My ANA showed a tilter of 1:160, when normal is 1:20.

I could barely walk, and thought I was going to end up in a wheelchair......until I researched all my test results on the internet, and they all linked back to the statins I was taking, and coming back as drug induced lupus.

The day after I stopped taking the statins, every single pain in my body went. I had been taking 8 diclofenic and 8 paracetamol a day and was still in constant pain. Now, I don't take anything, and I can now run again-the first time in 9 years.

I was reffered to a rheumatologst twice who stated I had palindromic rheumatism and said to just keep taking diclofenics......I was referred to neurologists, psychiatrists-totally unecessarily. The statins side effects were killing me.......

Seeing diabetics in pain now, with diagnosis of pain etc makes me wonder how many of them are on statins.........and will be suffering and blindly taking them because a GP told me to.

 

[andyh]

Re: Diabetes ad rheumatoid arthritis

thank you all, very interesting, I have cut the dairy out completely now and have not taken statins for over a year now, the doc actually told me to leave them off as I had the worst stiff back ever, and touch wood I am pretty much pain free at the moment.

Andy

 

[janabelle]

Re: Diabetes ad rheumatoid arthritis

Hi Andy,
don't know what insulin you're on, but due to the timing of your diagnosis, I thought you might be on an analogue long acting.
I was on Lantus and suffered terrible joint pains, particularly in my arms and chest area. I was sent to physio and mistakenly diagnosed with fibromyalgia. However due to the other complaints/side effects and BG probs I got off Lantus, and wow no more pain! I've since discovered Lantus is strongly associated with joint and muscle pain, I've heard from many people suffering the same thing. Don't know about levemir.
A google search for "lantus joint muscle pain" turns up some interesting info.
Jus

 

[andyh]

Re: Diabetes ad rheumatoid arthritis

OMG seems that there really is so many reasons why I may be getting joint pains, funny though that every test I have had for Rheumatoid factor comes back as normal but I do have the anti bodies which convinced them that I was in fact suffering from RA,

I have taken Lantus for 7 years now along with novo rapid, I have felt depressed too, no get up and go at all, lost my mojo completely, am now searching for reasons why, I must add though that in my area the diabetes care is virtually non existent, the annual check up is over in 5 mins then off you go again, does anyone else have a similar situation?


Andy

 

[janabelle]

Re: Diabetes ad rheumatoid arthritis

Andy, loads of people in that situation, it's like a cattle market. Blood Pressure, urine, check of the feet and out you go. Get off Lantus !! Do you remember what you were like generally as well as BG control before you went on Lantus, and what dose of it do you take?
When I first joined this forum in summer '08, I had my suspicions about Lantus, as since I'd been on it I'd felt like death,in pain and BGs all over the place-I'd been type-1 for 19 years, and never been so ill. Please read the thread "Lantus Problems" on the "medication and drugs" section of this forum viewtopic.php?f=26&t=2797 Soon realised I was not on my own :cry: Also worth looking at this thread too "changing from human insulin to animal insulin" in the "ask a question" section viewtopic.php?f=15&t=12673
Jus

 

[kay957]

Hello all, does ayone here have RA as well as type 1? I do and of late my ra has been quite bad, however the gold standard treatment for inflamed joints is steroids and case you don't know, it blows your readings out of the ball park for a while!

Someone advised me to give dairy a miss for a while to see if that has a positive effect on stiffness etc, can't hurt can it?

All the best to you all

Andy

Type 1 7 years now last hba1c 8.1

Hi Andy

I have diabetes type 2 and RA also, I am on steroids and another [chemo drug) Methotrexate which strips your immune system so that your antibodies stop attacking your joints, the only problem with that is I am prone to picking up infections, so I carry a warning card also just in case I am hospitalised for any reason because I can't have certain drugs or painkillers with this. I was told that because I have RA, this is why I got diabetes, it's all immune based problems.

How does your RA effect you? mine is all over in most major joints but the worst is my feet it's like walking on nails at times. But because I am on steroids at the moment it is doing ok, but the BG levels can go up, but because I am on VICTOZA for diabetes it seems to control it far better than other tablet form drugs.

I hope you get sorted out with your problems, ask your Rheumatologist for alternative therapies for RA instead of steroids. Can I also ask do you have a high ESR reading when you've had blood tests? I was screened for RA but that factor was NEG so I was then told my ESR levels were high indicating joint flare ups etc...I was then diagnosed with RA.

 

[andyh]

Thank you for your reply, sounds exactly the same as mine, I get neg readings for inflamm markers but increased ESR so hence they said I had RA, I get it in both hands and feet, sometimes worse than others. I take 4 tabs of sulfasalazine a day which I hate as like you said they damp down your immune system so you are at risk of infections etc.

I did not take them for a year once and had no episodes at all till I got shingles and basically could not move my legs for weeks, which left me with a very stiff back which has taken nearly 2 years to sort out!

So hey it's just no fun having type 1 and RA, but at least we have our health lol

Andy