Ask Dr. H: If you think a copper bracelet can help arthritis, go for it

Question:

I've been wearing a copper bracelet for the past year because it helps my arthritis. Can you tell me how it works?

Answer: I'm glad that you're finding some pain relief from wearing a copper bracelet. They've been used for hundreds of years to relieve joint pain, and there are even some animal studies that show taking copper supplements by mouth can decrease arthritis progression. Unfortunately, the pain-relieving benefits of wearing a copper bracelet have not held up to scientific scrutiny, and claims that they help are anecdotal.

The very first randomized placebo-controlled (where neither the researcher nor the study participant knew whether a copper bracelet or a sham bracelet was being worn) study on the use of copper and magnetic bracelets was just published in the Oct. 12 issue of Complementary Therapies in Medicine. The researchers concluded that there was no meaningful difference between the copper bracelet and the sham bracelet in effect on pain, stiffness, and physical function.

The likely explanation for your perceived benefit is in your personal belief that wearing a copper bracelet will help relieve your pain. Also, people tend to start wearing a copper bracelet when they're in a lot of pain, and they attribute the easing of their pain to the bracelet rather than to the natural waxing and waning of arthritis pain. Nonetheless, I don't see any harm in your continuing to wear the bracelet if you feel if gives you pain relief.

Q:

Is any cure for Alzheimer's disease on the horizon?

A: At present, there is no cure. FDA-approved medications like Aricept and Exelon can only temporarily slow the progressive memory loss of Alzheimer's disease.

An exciting piece of cutting-edge research from the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., may lead to a treatment that can reverse the brain damage of Alzheimer's disease, as well as treat other neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's disease.

In a reversal of conventional teaching, Mayo Clinic researchers have discovered that inflammation in the brain is not the trigger that leads to the buildup of amyloid (protein) plaque deposits - the hallmark of Alzheimer's disease. In fact, inflammation prevents protein plaques from forming in brain tissue and helps to clear the brain of these damaging protein plaques and tangles early in the disease development. Inflammation appears to direct cells in the brain to "gobble up" abnormal Alzheimer's plaques as though they were a foreign invader.

It's hypothesized that eventually, continued production of Alzheimer's protein plaque in the brain overwhelms the ability for inflammatory cells to do their protective job.

The idea of using an inflammatory-based treatment on Alzheimer's disease is a double-edged sword: Chronic inflammation over years will likely be harmful to healthy brain tissue and lead to even more damage.

The work suggests that the brain's immune cells could be induced to further attack amyloid plaques.