A few years ago I accidentally discovered how to get rid of my of arthritis pain, naturally. I got rid of my arthritis and arthritis pain by doing one single thing - read on.

Arthritis is usually found in the joints of the fingers, feet, knees, hips, and spine. Unlike some other types of arthritis, such as rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis is not systemic - it does not spread through the entire body. Sometimes arthritis occurs in the wrist, elbows, shoulders, and jaw but you generally don't find it there.

The synovium is a membrane that surrounds the whole joint; it's filled with synovial fluid, a lubricating liquid that supplies nutrients and oxygen to the cartilage. Proteoglycans are large molecules that help make up cartilage; they bond to water, which ensures the high-fluid content in cartilage. Cartilage is one of the few tissues that does not have its own blood supply.

Possible causes of arthritis include lesser known: bleeding disorders, like hemophilia, that causes bleeding to occur in the joint; disorders such as avascular necrosis, that block the blood supply closest to the joint; and conditions like hemochromatosis, that causes iron build-up in the joints. Although osteoarthritis generally accompanies aging, osteoarthritic cartilage is chemically different from normal aged cartilage. An inflammatory response causes cytokines, to gather in injured areas and cause inflammation and damage to body tissue and cells; it's known to play a role in rheumatoid arthritis and other muscle and joint problems associated with autoimmune diseases.

I got rid of my arthritis pain but going on an all raw food diet. I've included some suggestions here. Make smoothies with fruit only, using a base of two bananas, adding a cup of frozen or fresh blueberries and mango chunks or substitute any other fruit and add an energy boost of two tablespoons of coconut oil; add one or two leaves of kale for another highly nutritional boost -- no one will ever know.

Some people swear by glucosamine and/or chondroitin and others say it didn't help at all. Natural treatment for arthritis is usually a better choice because it's non-invasive to the body.

Making a ginger tea, by adding a thin slice or two of fresh gingerroot to hot water, is helpful to many people I know. Studies done on antioxidant vitamins question the value of these supplements; it's clearly better to consume these antioxidants in living foods because they may also need to work with other nutrients present in the foods to work properly.

Not a food, but many, including one well-known professional golfer, still wear copper bracelets and swear by them.

Many have told me that going off dairy products and gluten containing foods relieved their arthritis pain entirely. One natural approach is to consume foods that are known to help relieve arthritis pain or prevent arthritis.

Watch your diet closely - load-bearing joints are affected by excessive weight; they are the hips, knees, feet and spine. Gluten may be a culprit in arthritic diseases including fibromyalgia; avoid wheat, barley, rye, spelt, triticale, kamut and oats (although not a gluten grain it gets contaminated at the wheat mills).

Important exercises for arthritis are range-of-motion exercises, isometrics, and some weight bearing exercises. Stretching and warming up the joints should always be the first step in your exercise routine to make your joints more flexible. Exercise in a heated pool; it will help reduce the pressure on your joints and the heat will help you loosen those joints. Your body has 147 different joints that are in motion every day of your life.

Don't just sit there, keep moving. Exercise is good for joints affected by osteoarthritis. If you have pain and swelling in your fingers, try squeezing Thera-putty made for this purpose or exercising with two Chinese chime balls.

If you're planning to take any of the non-prescription NSAIDS for arthritis, make sure you understand what bad effects they can have on the stomach, liver and/or kidneys and discuss this with your doctor. Be aware that the use of NSAIDs or Cox-2 inhibitors do not halt the progress of osteoarthritis and may even hasten the onset. Drugs commonly used for arthritis pain can cause ulcers, heart disease and liver or kidney damage.

Knowing more about arthritis and how it works will ultimately help contribute to your relief of arthritis pain. One should not only search for relief of arthritis pain but work on preventing it. Stopping the progress of your arthritis as well as stopping your pain should be your number one goal.