HOW TO DEAL WITH BACK PAIN & RHEUMATOID JOINT PAIN.

 About the Author
  Dr. Fereydoon Batmanghelidj ( "Batman-ge-lij" ー who did not wish to be licensed for "practice of pharmaceutically oriented and invasive medicine in the U.S.") received formal medical training at St. mary'd Hospital Medical School (London University). He research into the phenomenon of pain and water metabolism of the human body has dictated a paradigm change in the basic understanding of science applied to the practice of medicine. His views are published in scientific journals. The underlying principles of the recommendations in his treatment procedures are the most current knowledge of anatomy and the science of physiology.
    Since a highly significant and basic paradigm change is the practice of medicine, in the face of very stiff commercial and professional resistance, will be difficult to institute unless there is a concurrent public educational program to force the change, it has become necessary to begin a highly coordinated public awareness program. The author believes: " To end major diseases in earth within two decades is now a possibility. A paradigm change in the science of medicine will do it, but the public must demand the change. the time to act is now." - 1991, F. Batmanghelidj.

  For production of educational materials for public, under legal advisement, it became necessary to establish Global Health Solutions Inc.*, a legally independent enterprise. This self-treatment manual, How to Deal Simply with Back Pain & Rheumatoid Joint Pain, and the videotape How to Deal with Back Pain  are the first of these educational products. 


*NOTE: About Us: Global Health Solutions
Global Health Solutions, GHS, a worldwide publishing house, founded and developed by F. Batmagnhelidj, M.D., the world's foremost medical researcher on the medical properties of water, is a center of education for those who prefer to adhere to the logic of the natural and the simple in medicine.
GHS is dedicated to spreading the information of new science in medicine and promoting the public awareness of the hidden wonders of natural, simple, pure water in improving the public health and well-being.
GHS publishes Dr. F. Batmanghelidj¡'s pioneering work on dehydration that identifies different health problems caused by persistent dehydration of the human body - a totally different perspective to the cause and cure of many human diseases until now thought to be incurable.
Dr. B's two decades of research revealed a simple truth that unintentional chronic dehydration can cause diseases; it also demonstrated that many of the chronic degenerative diseases are preventable, and some of them can even be cured by increasing daily water intake. Dr. B's groundbreaking work provides new knowledge and new possibilities for improving and maintaining good health that the public need and deserve to know.
GHS is proud to be the publisher of all of Dr. B's six books in the series of You're Not Sick, You're Thirsty, as well as some of his most informative and inspiring public lectures and seminars in audio-visual formats.
GHS is committed to fulfilling Dr. B's mission - a mission to educate the public about the truth of dehydration so that we will not become unnecessarily over-drugged; to promote the public awareness of the healing powers of water so that we can become healers of our own bodies; to transform the expensive sick-care system so that we can have a more nature-friendly, people-friendly health care system.

LOOK INSIDE THE BOOK, CLICK HERE. 

How to Deal with Back Pain and Rheumatoid Joint Pain is a practical manual based on the author's many years of research and numerous clinical observations. The book introduces a new medical technology to treat and prevent back pain and rheumatoid joint pain. 

* Learn the vital information on the mechanics behind your spinal column, the role of the disc and its needs for water. 

* Learn the simple body movement that will promote fluid circulation in the disc spaces that will result in relief of the back pain and sciatic pain. 

* It is simple, safe and inexpensive. 

Don't hate yourself for missing out on this information.

The Cell
Let us take a  look at the most basic life-generating element in the human body, the cell. The cell is  surrounded by a very thin outer "skin" or membrane that protects it from being flooded by unregulated entry of water, salt, sugar, fats and many other elements that constitute the serum solution that is outside the cell wall.
  Since the cell is constantly bathed in serum solution, it regulates its intake and output by means of many, many small pumping units. Fluid inside the cells should be neutral, neither too acidic nor too alkaline; it has a pH of 7.4 under normal circumstance. The way this neutral pH maintained is very simple : the cation (cat-i-on) pumps constantly pump out hydrogen ion, which is the acid substance not used by the cell. The entire human body ー nerve tissue, bone, cartilage, ligament, muscle, blood, brain, you name it ー is made up of these tiny cells, each performing this regulation of intake and output of elements to maintain function. Each cell is just like an underwater city, with canal systems and waterways; outside of it, arteries and veins are its highways. 

How to Deal With Back Pain and Rheumatoid Joint Pain

This educational and preventive treatment manual gives you easy-to-use techniques for relieving chronic back pain and rheumatoid joint pain. This new approach to prevention and treatment of back pain is simpler, inexpensive, less dangerous and more effective.
-- Learn the vital information on the mechanics behind your spinal column, the role of the disc and its needs for water
-- Learn the simple body movement that will promote fluid circulation in the disc spaces the twill result in relief of back and sciatic pain.

Dr. F. Batmanghelidj ( "Batman-ge-lij"- who did not wish to be licensed for "practice of pharmaceutic-ally oriented and invasive medicine in the U.S.") received formal medical  training at St. Mary's Hospital Medical School (London University) . His research into the phenomenon of pain and water metabolism of the body has dictated a paradigm change in the basic understanding of science applied to the practice of medicine. His views are published in scientific journals. The underlying principles of the recommendations in his treatment procedures are the most current knowledge of anatomy and the science of physiology. 

How to Deal with Back Pain and Rheumatoid Joint Pain is a practical manual based on the author’s many years of research and numerous clinical observations. The book introduces a new medical technology to treat and prevent back pain and rheumatoid joint pain. * Learn the vital information on the mechanics behind your spinal column, the role of the disc and its needs for water. * Learn the simple body movement that will promote fluid circulation in the disc spaces that will result in relief of the back pain and sciatic pain. * It is simple, safe and inexpensive.  Don’t hate yourself for missing out on this information. Dr. Batmanghelidj received his formal medical education at St. Mary’s Hospital Medical School of London University. He provides for the layman a clear and comprehensive book on the origins of chronic pain. His clinical and scientific research exposes, for the first time, that recurring “chronic pains” are a signal system of the body indicating severe general or local dehydration. Most of these pains can be relieved simply by drinking enough water. Instead, however, the patient often receives costly pharmaceutical medications which treat rather than cure.   In this book, back pain and rheumatoid joint pain as indicators of local chronic dehydration are explained. The mechanisms involving the important role of water in holding the spinal column together are discussed. Based on years of detailed study of the human anatomy and the science of physiology, Dr. Batmanghelidj has devised a new exercise approach for the successful hydration of the disc core, the retraction of the displaced discs, and immediate relief of pain, even sciatica. These exercises are clearly explained and demonstrated, and may be the only way to save yourself from the surgeon’s knife.   This book is unlike any other “how-to” book on the market. It is an instructive presentation about the very simple way of finding comfort and relief from two of the most commonly occurring pains of the body low back pain and rheumatoid joint pain.

The Foundation For The Simple In Medicine

In 1983, the Foundation for the Simple in Medicine, a charitable medical research (think tank) foundation, was founded to establish grounds for a change in the present fundamental understanding of the basis on which all human applied research has been done. The present basic assumption in practice of medicine (paradigm) is that it is the physico-chemical properties of ions ( "i-ons" are the purest form of the basic elements, such as sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, etc.) that regulate the water intake of the human body, and that the substance we call "water," the solvent of the body, performs a passive role to these basic elements and everything else that is dissolved in the same solvent.

Why? Because early in research , it was recognized that solutes (substances that are dissolved in the body fluids) are highly reactive substances. Clinical experience has shown that this assumption cannot be complete , because the human body can become dehydrated as we progress in age. The Foundation for the Simple in Medicine holds the opinion that since the sensor regulators to ion exchanges that regulate the water movement in the human body are proteins, and proteins by nature are obedient in the presence of water, the more free water there is around them, the more efficiently these proteins function. It therefore follows that it must be water that ultimately regulates its own intake.

Clinically , this view can be validated by the fact that people who do not acknowledge thirst even though dehydrated, after a few days of regulating their water intake on a "forced voluntary" basis, will rediscover their thirst sensation -- their body's craving for water. The Foundation for the Simple in Medicine is making another statement which follows the logic  of the previous view: Since all functions of the human body are water-dependent, let us revise our approach to medical treatment procedures; let us recognize a primary water regulatory role for the neurotransmitter systems that has been recognized to be involved in the water intake mechanisms of the body. In the medical condition where these systems are being chemically manipulated to make the patient "better,"  let us try to satisfy the natural urge of these systems for water before there is any chemical interference with their systems' other natural emergency regulatory functions. The systems recognized for water regulation for the body are : serotonergic (which regulates the calcium movement of the cell, and pain registration among many other functions, histaminergic (which regulates cat-i-ons --cations are the basic elements that carry a positive electric charge-- exchange in the cell, also recognized in many other functions, induction of pain and allergy) and renin-angiotensin (which is stimulated into activity by the two previous systems independently and possibly simultaneously, manipulated in hypertension.)

To introduce its ideas into the practice of medicine all over the world, The Foundation for the Simple in Medicine has begun the publication of its scientific views in its own Science in Medicine Simplified (Sci. Med.Simplified), which is periodically printed and distributed to research centers and medical libraries in different parts of the world.

Our Invitation to Worldwide Readers
" Let us lobby together and ask the scientists in medicine to begin the evaluation of the statements dictated by the new paradigm that recognizes the regulatory and reactive hydrolytic functions of water in the human body. Under the new paradigm , you can rest assured , the practice of medicine will become a much gentle preventive, as well as curative , physiological approach to early disease emergence , before the damage is done.

We are most interested in hearing your reactions to this book and invitation, and about results success or relief you may achieve by following the suggestions and exercises presented herein.

If you follow the program and recommendations and do not experience relief, we would like to hear about that as well. the comments of physicians and other health-care professionals will be particularly appreciated.

Please sent  comments, reactions, and suggestions to:

Back Pain
P.O.Box 3189
Falls Church, Virginia 22043, USA.

All responses will be held in strictest confidence.

Back Pain, Disc Displacement,
Rheumatoid Joint Pain : Water and Exercise

This educational preventive-treatment manual will deal with chronic back pain and rheumatoid joint pain in language as simple as possible , although the impact of what is being said will eventually fill volumes of written material. The reader is advised not to judge the value of this book by its simplicity of presentation, but should try to evaluate the essence of what is being said. Justification of confused views will always produce voluminous verbiage, particularly when held views have to have an application appeal for the people who are at the receiving end, and if it eventually will mean expensive surgical interferences.

If we are to prevent decompensation and/or achieve relief from pain of disc displacement , we have to make sure that our human body is optimally hydrated so that water can leave the main blood circulatory systems and hydrate the disc core; also, from the front angle of the intervertebral spaces is kept widely open, until corrective restitution to the physical properties and position of the disc have taken place: How do we do this?





You are encouraged to read this book in its entirety; however, a preliminary reading of the first part of the manual will clearly illuminate how it is possible to alleviate the pain and anxiety of back discomfort , mild or excruciating. The more detailed part of the manual should then be read to revise and learn more about the physiology of pain, the cell, the nerves sensitive to pain ; referred pain and/or muscle weakness caused by a prolapsed intervertebral disc; weight and motion and their effect; the foot and its arches; special points about pelvic anatomy and distribution of forces; the relationship of the disc to the vertebra; the disc and its functions; and the cartilage and the joints.

Simple exercises and hydrolic treatment (regulated water intake) are carefully explained.

Here, then, is a guide to the care and preventive treatment of back pain and disc displacement , as well as rheumatoid joint pain.

Chronic Pain : What Does It Signify?

This book started as a simple address of back pain, which, as everyone  knows, is a devastating chronic pain of the human body. as my research at the Foundation (The Foundation for the Simple in Medicine) into the phenomenon of pain has steadily progressed, I realized that this book would be incomplete  if some explanation on the "other" chronic joint pain of the body -- rheumatoid arthritis -- was not included. After all , most back pain originates at the vertebral joints, and if book was to be a grass-roots  approach to pain, rheumatoid joint pain is an equally devastating condition that also deserved discussion. The fundamental explanations about the origin of  rheumatoid joint pain are equally simple, and, at the onset, it is even more simply treatable than back pain.

A news item in the 31st July,1990 Health Section of The Washington Post gave me sufficient emotional shock to re-structure this book, which was at that time already in the printer's hands.

A 47-year-old child psychiatrist had been suffering from severe  rheumatoid arthritis for some time. She had been given the customary medications until she had developed addiction, apparently, and the combination of addiction and pain had totally incapacitated her. She had a daughter of 17, who was brain-damaged and asthmatic, and a son who was bright. The stress in the family setting had become so great that even the housekeeper suffered a heart attack. The psychiatrist's husband, himself a doctor and a prominent cancer researcher, eventually found the situation unbearable enough that he took the lives of his wife and two children and then committed suicide.

To my mind, this tragedy --- along with similar , daily-occurring tragedies, --- stemmed from a most absurd ignorance and the "ostrich" policy of those involved in the politics of medicine. The scientific knowledge that can offer simple solutions to major health problems --- most particularly , at a preventable stage that would not cause severe genetic damage -- does exist.

For the innocent and trusting sick to benefit from the solutions offered within the science of physiology, medicine will need a change of stand by some key policy-makers and the government administrators of health who support the present commercial attitude of the health-care industry; medical professionals will need to give support to alternative ideas and the more plausible science-based solutions to the health problems of the sick. This change of attitude might not serve the profit motivations of the industrial and commercial arms of the health-care institutions, but it should be remembered that simple, nature-serving solutions to major public health problems are less costly to the society they are obligated to serve.

ON VIBRATION AND THE HUMAN BODY

LITERATURE ON VIBRATION AND THE HUMAN BODY
A study which demonstrates of why shiatsu massage systems are better than vibration systems.

Introduction to Vibration
Vibration is the oscillatory motion of various bodies. All bodies with mass elements and elasticity are
capable of vibration; hence, most machines and structures including the human body experience vibration to
some degree. Two different categories of vibration are distinguished in literature. Free vibration takes place
when the system oscillates due to the action of internal forces only. Forced vibration is caused by the action of
external forces. If the frequency of excitation coincides with the natural frequency of the system, resonance
occurs. The result is large oscillations within the structure of creating potentially harmful stress. For example,
the potential effect of resonance is the shattering of a crystal glass, when opera singer sings at the natural
frequency of the crystal. Because of energy dissipation due to friction and other resistances, damping occurs
in all structures.

The Effects of Vibration on the Human Body
Vibrations influence the human body in many different ways. The response to a vibration exposure is
primarily dependent on the frequency, amplitude, and duration of exposure. Other factors may include the
direction of vibration input, location and mass of different body segments, level of fatigue and the presence of
external support. The human response to vibration can be both mechanical and psychological. Mechanical
damage to human tissue can occur, which are caused by resonance within various organ systems.
Psychological stress reactions also occur from vibrations, however, they are not necessarily frequently related.

From an exposure point of view, the low frequency range of vibration is the most interesting. Exposure to
vertical vibrations in the 5-10 Hz range generally causes resonance in the thoracic-abdominal system, at 20-30
Hz in the head-neck-shoulder system, and at 60-90 Hz in the eyeball. When vibrations are attenuated in the
body, its energy is absorbed by the tissue and organs. The muscles are important in this respect. Vibration
leads to both voluntary and involuntary contractions of muscles, and can cause local muscle fatigue,
particularly when the vibration is at the resonant-frequency level. Furthermore, it may cause reflex
contractions, which will reduce motor performance capabilities.

The amount of mechanical energy transmission due to vibrations is dependent on the body position and
muscle contractions. In standing subject, the first resonance occurs at the hip, shoulder, and head at about
5Hz. With subjects sitting, resonance occurs at the shoulders and to some degree at the head at 5 Hz.
Furthermore, a significant resonance from shoulder to head occurs at about 30 Hz as shown in Figure 1.

Based on psychological studies, observations indicated that the general state of consciousness is
influenced by vibrations. Low frequency vibrations 1-2 Hz with moderate intensities induce sleep. Unspecific
psychological stress reactins have also been noted (Guignard, 1965: von Gierke, 1964), as well as degraded
visual and motor effects on functional performance. Some symptoms of vibration exposure at low frequencies
are given in Table 1, along with the frequency ranges at which the symptoms are most predominant.

TABLE 1

Symptoms Due to Whole-Body Vibration and the Frequency Range at which They Usually Occur (Adapted from Rasmussen, 1982).

Symptoms {Frequency (Hz)}
General feeling of discomfort {4-9}

Head symptoms {13-20}

Lower Jaw symptoms {6-8}

Influence on speech {13-20}

“Lump in throat” {12-16}

Chest Pains {5-7}

Abdominal pains {4-10}

Urge to urinate {10-18}

Increased muscle tone {13-20}

Influence on breathing movements {4-8}

Muscle contractions {4-9}

Effects of Vibration on the Spine

In recent years, considerable thought has been given to the effects of vibration on the spine. Many studies
are suggesting an increased risk of low-back pain in drivers of tractors (Rosegger and Rosegger, 1960; Dupuis
and Christ, 1972); of trucks (Kelsey and Hardy, 1975; Gruber, 1976; Frymoyer et al., 1980) of buses (Gruber
and Ziperman, 1974; Kelsey and Hardy, 1975); and of airplanes (Fitzgerald and Crotty, 1972; Schulte-Wintrop
and Knosche, 1970). These studies indicated that low-back pain occurs at an earlier age in subjects exposed
to vibration. It was reported that truck driving increased the risk of disk herniation by a factor of four, while
tractor driving and car commuting (greater than 20 miles/day) increased the risk by a factor of two. Also,
studies of vibration exposed populations (Rosengger and Rosegger, 1960; Dupuis and Christ, 1972; Gruber,
1976) indicated that radiographic changes occur in the spines of these subjects.

It is well known that the spine fractures (in compression) when subjected to strong vertical acceleration.
Vibration at lower acceleration levels have been suggested to cause fatigue failures of different component
structures of the spine; these vibrations also interfere with the nutrition of the disc, predisposing it to
degenerative changes (Sandover, 1981 and 1985). Wilder et al. (1982); Punjabi et al. (1986); Pope et al.
(1987) Hagnea et al. (1986) and Broman et al. (1989) measured the response of the trunk to whole-body
vibrations. Their results indicated that the resonance frequency is between 4-5 Hz. Trunk muscle activities
during vibration have also been measured (Seroussi et al. 1987) a cyctic muscle activity occurs for
experimental seated subjects. Significantly higher EMG activities were observed for vibration as compared to
static moment loads only.

Vibration Syndrome

The upper extremities of the human being can be considered a unique body segment. As with whole body
vibration, the response to segmental vibration depends on frequency, amplitude, etc. Segmental vibration
causes a symptom complex usually referred to as vibration syndrome. The symptom originates from injuries to
the blood vessels, nerves, bones, joints and muscles. Injuries can occur after exposure times from months to
decades, and are usually, at first, reversible. The most well known of these symptoms is Reynaud’s Syndrome
or Traumatic Vasopastic Disease (TVD) (Taylor, 1974). In industry is called the white finger disease/syndrome.
The syndrome can be described as a sudden block in the blood circulation to the fingers, which become white,
pale, cold and sometimes painful. Tactile sensitivity is reduced, preventing precision work. TVD is caused by
smooth muscle constriction in the blood vessels of the fingers. Other vibration-induced symptoms come from
the peripheral nerves and consist of paresthesias and tingling sensations. A decreased nerve action-potential
conduction velocity has been found, and a decrease in the ability to perform precise motor movement of the
fingers.

Transmission of Vibration in the Upper Extremity

Most hand held tools generates random vibration over a wide frequency range (typically 2 2000 Hz) Lowfrequency
vibrations can be transmitted to the trunk and head. It may cause unspecific symptoms such as
headache, vertigo, nausea, and psychological stress reactions. Attenuation occurs with 3dB/octave in the
frequency range of 20 – 100Hz. The attenuation of the elbow and upper part of the arm increases by about
10dB/octave between 100 & 630 Hz, and the wrist by about 6 dB/octave. Iwata (1972) found that the vibration
at the wrist was two to three times higher at 20 Hz that the input vibration; that is, resonance had occurred.

The transmission of vibrations in the upper extremity is linear. When the vibration of hand-held tool
increases by 10 dB. The hand grip force is important to the transfer function. When increased from 20 N to 40
N 912dB), the hand vibration increases only by 3 to 5 dB. It appears that the transmitted vibration is
proportional to the cube root of the hand grip force (Pyykko et al., 1976). Several factors influencing the
transmissions of vibrations to the hand are listed in Table 2.

Concluding Remarks

• The automotive industries strive to reduce vehicle vibration, in particular its transmission to the seats. It
has been shown that vibration increases discomfort and reduces operator performance.

• Excellent massage systems should be able to enhance the comfort of truck muscles, but not increasing
discomfort (Seroussi et al., 1987 indicated that vibration significantly increases truck muscular activities
when compared to static loading using EMG techniques.

• Resonance frequency must be avoided; in particular, frequencies in the range of 5Hz. It may not be easy
to avoid these frequencies when a massage system based on the concept of vibration is integrated to
automobile seats. Combined vibrations from various systems may generate undesirable resonance
frequencies, which are unacceptable to the human body.

TABLE 2

Factors Known or Believed to Influence the severity of Occupational Exposure of the Hand to Vibration (Bramer and Taylor, 1982)

Physical:
Dominant vibration frequencies entering the hand

Years of employment involving vibration exposure

Total duration of exposure each work day

Temporal pattern of exposure each work day

Dominant vibration direction relative to the hand

Nonoccupational exposure to vibration

Biodynamic:
Hand grip forces

Surface area, location and mass of parts of the hand in contact with the source of vibration

Posture (position of the hand and arm relative to the body)

Other factors influencing the coupling of vibration into the hand (e.g.., texture of handle)

Individual:
Factors influencing source intensity and exposure duration (e.g., tool maintenance,

Work rate, skill, and productivity)

Biological susceptibility to vibration.

Vasoconstrictive agents affect the peripheral circulation (e.g., smoking, drugs)

Predisposing disease or prior injury to the fingers or hands (trauma, lacerations, etc.)

Hand size and weight

Epidemiological factors (age, etc.)

FIGURE 1

Transmissibility of Vertical Vibration From Table to Various Parts of the Body of a Sitting human subject as a function of Frequency
(Adapted from Rasmussen, 1982).

3.5
3.0
2.5
ACCELERATION RATIO 
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0
1 2 3 4 6 8 10 20 30 40
FREQUENCY, HZ