Five Non-Invasive Ways to Treat Arthritis

 Old hands typing (Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay)

Arthritis is a common health problem among many people. Recent statistics indicate approximately 22.7% of adults in the United States have been diagnosed with some form of this condition.

If you’re one of them, you know how important it is to be familiar with various remedies and treatments. The following natural options are particularly worth your attention. They’ll help you relieve your arthritis discomfort without turning to medicine or invasive treatment.

Lose Weight

Maintaining a healthy weight is important for many reasons. Reducing arthritis pain is simply one of them.

When you’re obese, excess weight puts your joints under significant stress. Losing weight reduces the stress, thus reducing your pain as well.

Sticking to a nutritious diet is part of losing weight. However, you should also develop a safe exercise routine. Engaging in physical activity has been shown to alleviate pain and stiffness in people with arthritis. Just make sure you’re coordinating with a professional if your arthritis is particularly severe.

You may even want to contact a physical therapist in your area. For example, if you’re based in New York, direct access to physical therapy can put you in touch with nearby experts. This is a convenient way to learn how to combat your condition, especially because you want to make sure all exercises you perform are safe.

Use Topical Remedies

Traditional topical pain remedies have been shown to be ineffective at treating arthritis. However, new remedies have been developed for the specific purpose of alleviating arthritis discomfort. Although it’s too soon to tell how effective they are for the average patient, these anti-inflammatories may help you manage your condition. They are certainly worth trying.

Apply Capsaicin Cream

Capsaicin cream, when applied topically, has helped reduce discomfort in patients struggling with a range of chronic pain conditions. It’s also available without a prescription.

Researchers aren’t sure why it has this effect. Currently, one theory proposes that capsaicin may interfere with the transfer of pain information from the nerves to the brain.

Consider Acupuncture

Don’t dismiss acupuncture as a “fake” treatment. Studies have indicated it can relieve discomfort in people with arthritis. While results may vary on a case-by-case basis, you should consider trying it to find out if it works for you as it has for others.

Electrostimulation

Again, it’s important to coordinate with professionals when working to treat and manage your arthritis. Doing so offers many key benefits. For example, you may get access to treatment options you wouldn’t have known about otherwise.

Consider electrostimulation. Physical therapists sometimes use this technique to reduce pain and swelling by targeting key nerves with electricity. It’s another natural remedy that may deliver the results you seek.

Keep these in mind if you’re looking for ways to reduce arthritis pain while staying away from treatments that may cause you to experience unpleasant side effects. Although you should always listen to your physician’s advice when you have this type of condition, you should also consider all your options. One or more of these may help you.

Brexit Britain's Weakness Exposed in US Trade Deal Documents

Taking a tough stance. (EPA/Peter Foley)

The US has published its objectives for a proposed trade agreement with the UK – and its thinking highlights just how weak Britain’s bargaining position will be in the post-Brexit global economy.

The US trade representative outlines many of the usual ways to increase trade between the two countries – namely, reducing tariffs and ensuring both sides share the same standards and regulations. But the emphasis is very much on the UK aligning itself with US standards. This will have major implications. It will move the UK away from the EU standards it currently has, which will harm trade with its most important trading partner and generate potential hurdles in a future trade deal with the EU.

The US is taking a tough line from the outset on a number of issues. With a population of 66m and GDP of roughly US$3 trillion, the UK is dwarfed by the bloc it is leaving – the EU’s population is 500m and has a combined GDP of US$20 trillion. Plus, the UK has a transparent need to both replace existing EU trade agreements and create new ones.
In Britain, concerns over food safety have been at the heart of debate over a potential US-UK trade agreement. The expectation of American chlorine-washed chicken entering British markets as part of a deal quickly became politically contentious, splitting Theresa May’s cabinet twice in 2017.

⏩ Read more: Chlorine-washed chicken Q&A: food safety expert explains why US poultry is banned in the EU

But the quandary facing the British government extends well beyond concerns over the consumer safety implications of US mass production methods. With US agricultural imports would also come US agricultural and sanitary and phytosanitary standards, which are in place to protect against diseases. This will create hurdles for British agricultural exports heading to the EU, as it will no longer meet EU standards.

For British farmers, the wholesale removal of trade barriers with the US may also come at a time when the industry is particularly vulnerable. Following Brexit, British agriculture will lose access to the EU subsidies it receives through the Common Agricultural Policy. While the UK government has promised to replace these, questions about its ability to fund its many post-Brexit promises remain.

Beyond agriculture

British manufacturers face the same demands to harmonise their regulations from the US trade representative, creating similar difficulties for exporters targeting the EU. Then, when it comes to services, US demands are much more dramatic.

Britain’s service sector brings in a substantial trade surplus – something the US will be loath to add to its growing trade deficit. Central to US plans will be to privatise and deregulate British services, such as healthcare provision or utilities and infrastructure, to enable easy market access for internationally-engaged American enterprises. These same corporations are actively engaged in the trade agreement process on the US side.

There’s a lot more than just chickens at stake in a US-UK trade deal.(Shutterstock)

American ambitions for bringing UK regulations in line with its own also extends to trade of digital goods and services, potentially causing a tremendous shift away from EU regulations, which concern everything from intellectual property rights to data protection and digital privacy.

Beyond trade

As part of the deep integration objectives, the US-UK trade agreement will cover additional non-trade issues. These include labour standards, environmental protection and anti-corruption measures – all areas where the UK arguably is currently tougher than the US.

It is telling that the wording of the US objectives focuses explicitly on the UK obligations in upholding these kinds of standards. In contrast, US objectives for negotiations with Japan refer to both “parties”, rather than specifically Japanese obligations.

Perhaps the differences in wording is a result of different teams writing the documents. But it could also reveal the extent to which the UK is viewed by the US team as the weaker party to their deal, which will likely have extensive effects on the concessions the UK negotiating team can manage to extract from the US opening position.

Relinquishing control, not taking it back

Rather than taking back control, the starting point for US-UK trade negotiations is one where the British government cedes sovereignty over a wide range of issues. Britain’s size and detachment from the EU single market limits its bargaining power with large trade partners, whose governments will have no concern for the effects on the British public.

While harmonising standards with the US will pose a barrier to future trade with the EU, the deal could also increase limitations on British foreign policy more broadly. The US is also pursuing a clause that allows it to withdraw from a US-UK agreement if the UK agrees to an agreement with certain countries such as China. Similar terms are included in the US-Japan trade agreement objectives, as the Trump administration tries to limit China’s economic influence across the globe. There is also a section in the US objectives that is designed to limit Britain’s independence over its Middle East foreign policy.

The hard line taken by the US, along with the wide range of concessions demanded of the UK clearly point to the UK’s weakened bargaining position outside the EU. And the US is not the only trading partner seeking significant concessions in exchange for a deal. India, Japan, and South Korea have all signalled similar expectations in preparations for their own deals. All of this sits in stark contrast to the Brexit campaign’s promise to “take back control”.

About Today's Contributor:

Michael Plouffe, Lecturer in International Political Economy, UCL

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. 

Emerging Collective Unveils New Art Space in Atlanta with Installation on Police Brutality by Activist Artist Ann Lewis

Ann Lewis with her installation, ...and counting, in Emerging Collective's new art space in Decatur, Atlanta.

On the anniversary of Martin Luther King's assassination, artist Ann Lewis will present her acclaimed work, …and counting, as the debut exhibition in Emerging Collective's new space in Downtown Decatur.

Lewis' chrono-reactive installation of 1,093 toe tags presents the details of each police-related death in the United States during 2016. 

"That year saw several reactions to police brutality – Colin Kaepernick's viral protest, the strengthening of the Black Lives Matter movement, and a multitude of news coverage," said Lewis. "…and counting was my way of trying to document this pervasive epidemic and through the process garner a greater understanding of the issue. My practice centers on using creativity to offer opportunities for solution-centered discussions on social justice and environmental issues."

Curated by Emerging Collective, this show is a call to action in response to the ubiquitous tragedy of deaths at the hands of police. From afar, the installation's beauty lies in its simplicity and symmetry. However, up close, viewers benefit from an experiential opportunity to confront the details of each stolen life. 

Completing the installation is Lewis' A History of Assault, a brooding 24-minute audio track summarizing life in the modern American police state.

"It's incredible to have our own space in Atlanta, a city that is in hyper demographic flux and well positioned to be a center of cultural change," said Raj Udeshi, Founder of Emerging Collective. "Our departure from New York is just more evidence of the larger creative exodus. It's clear that people in Atlanta are hungry for our kind of visual arts programming."

Programming:

The exhibition will run from 12 March to 12 April 2019, at 115 North McDonough Street in Decatur, across from Decatur High School. 

An artist reception will take place on Thursday 04 April from 7-10 p.m., including a panel discussion with Ann Lewis and Atlanta artist Fabian Williams, whose activist mural depicting Colin Kaepernick and Muhammad Ali was destroyed just in time for the Atlanta Superbowl. 

⏩The panel discussion will be followed by an open mic townhall, for those who wish to put forward ideas on solutions to police brutality.

On Friday 05 April, Emerging Collective will host a dinner, where local art patrons and activists will get the chance to engage with Ann Lewis, and discuss her crossover between activist and fine art. 

On Saturday 06 April, Emerging Collective will host a daytime activation with youth participants from neighboring schools followed by a screening of The Hate U Give, the polemic 2018 film which confronts police brutality head-on.

About Ann Lewis:

(Via Emerging Collective)

Ann Lewis (American) is a multidisciplinary activist artist using painting, installation, and participatory performance to explore themes related to American identity, power structures, and justice. She often creates these works in our public spaces. In early 2014 the artist garnered national media attention when she installed an oversized police tape banner that read ‘GENTRIFICATION IN PROGRESS’ at the former graffiti mecca 5 Pointz in Queens, New York. She exhibited at the White House in the fall of 2015 during the Obama Administration's reflection on mass incarceration. 

Most recently her mural See Her reflecting upon the humanity of incarcerated women received an Americans for the Arts 2018 Public Art Network (PAN) Year in Review Award. Her work has been acquired by the New York Historical Society Museum and the US Library of Congress. 

Since receiving her bachelor’s degree in Fine Art from the University of Wisconsin- Madison, her art has been reviewed in Hyperallergic, Artnet, Interview Magazine, The LA Times, The Guardian, and The New York Times. She has exhibited in solo and group shows throughout the US and abroad including shows at Petzel Gallery in New York, Seyhoun Gallery in Tehran, Iran, and Truth to Power during the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia...

About Emerging Collective:

Emerging Collective is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization supporting artists working at the intersection of activism and the avant-garde. 

Pioneering the concept of Art NGO, Emerging Collective promotes fine art that advances political + social dialogue. 

Its aim is to catapult the most promising activist creatives, empowering them to serve as agents of cultural change.

SOURCE: Emerging Collective

Experience The Cult Horror Game, "White Day," Through VR In The Latest Title: "White Day: Courage Test"

Experience the cult horror game, "White Day," through VR.

Initially released in 2001, White Day -- A Labyrinth Named School, is a renowned cult horror classic game, which is now making a comeback as a VR game. Sonnori has announced that it will be launching a new title in the White Day series: White Day: Courage Test.

The White Day series was initially released as a PC game in 2001. It was also released as a paid mobile app, which has had over 600,000 downloads. The White Day series was also released for PS4 and Steam.

• Specifically designed for VR theme parks, White Day: Courage Test has been developed using the latest Unreal Engine and VR optimized game play to be a motion-based game providing an extremely immersive experience.

When the game begins, the player is a student who has entered the school at night as a part of a school club's test of courage. He/she explores the school, looking for various hidden items, while also trying to find the way out of the school. Strange things begin to happen during game play.

With a focused composition optimized for VR theme parks and programmed "randomness," White Day: Courage Test offers fresh entertainment for repeat players. 

Also, the visual and sound effects that perfectly recreate a school at night provide horror-filled fun that differentiates White Day from other VR horror games.

White Day: Courage Test features a tutorial that guides the player from the start about how to play the game, eliminating the need for training staff and making game operation in VR theme parks a lot easier.

• White Day: Courage Test differs from normal VR theme park games because only one person can wear the VR head-mounted display (HMD). However, in White Day: Courage Test, users can interact with other players during game play. Secondary players can hide or move objects in the game via a wirelessly connected tablet PC, getting in the way of the main player or challenging the main player to a battle of wits. 

White Day: Courage Test is a new game that aims to maximize the attraction of the White Day series. Its quality outranks any horror game that may be enjoyed in the general VR theme park. Users can uniquely interact with other users through the "dual play" setting. 

An official at Sonnori said, "Currently, we are focusing on sales of the B2B version for the VR theme park. We have tested it in Korea over the past year and it has been upgraded into a more stable version. We will work with our international partners to distribute the game globally."

⏩ Visit the White Day: Courage Test Introduction Page for more info.

SOURCE: Sonnori

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Madame Tussauds Orlando Reveals Two Exciting Additions to Justice League: A Call for Heroes

The Flash and Cyborg (Image via ScreenCrush

Madame Tussauds Orlando's action-packed Justice League: A Call for Heroes experience is growing at... err... lightning speed with the addition of, not one, but two new DC Super Heroes. 

⏩ On April 12, the all-star cast from the blockbuster film Justice League will finally be reunited with the debut of Madame Tussauds latest wax masterpieces: Ezra Miller as The Flash and Ray Fisher as Cyborg. 

Designed in collaboration with Warner Bros. Consumer Products and DC, each figure has been recreated to identically mirror the DC Super Heroes' appearance and costumes from the film, including authentic replica props, and each figure will also have its own thrilling mission for guests to complete inside the exclusive experience at Madame Tussauds Orlando.

• Half-man, half-robot, Cyborg's wax figure portrayal will be equally dynamic and interactive with his bionic pose! In the experience, guests must locate a hidden code and transmit it to Cyborg through a nearby keypad. Cyborg will then harness the power of technology to project a hologram revealing the location of the device Lex Luthor has used to wreak havoc on the city.

• Racing to join forces with Madame Tussauds' epic lineup of DC Super Heroes, The Flash will fight crime in an alleyway that features original artwork from the Justice League film. Positioned in his iconic running pose, guests will race alongside The Flash and see if they have what it takes to be a Super Hero at lightning speed! As they run in place a speedometer shows your speed as you run alongside The Flash.

"We are ecstatic that the Justice League: A Call for Heroes experience now unites the ENTIRE DC Super Hero cast!" said Madame Tussauds Orlando General Manager James Paulding. "With the two new heroes, guests will become totally immersed in the epic saga as they race alongside The Flash, harness Cyborg's power of technology and join the rest of the Justice League to save the world."

Justice League: A Call for Heroes (Image via LoupDargent.info)

Justice League: A Call for Heroes debuted exclusively inside Madame Tussauds Orlando and Sydney last year and continues to offer an unrivaled experience for fans of the iconic DC Super Heroes. 

 Part of a seismic shift within the Madame Tussauds brand, the experience features special effects that include a series of hands-on, interactive missions and a larger-than-life-set where fans can become the stars of their favorite stories. 

The attraction also marked the first-time-ever that super fans could get up close and personal with some of their favorite DC Super Heroes including Jason Momoa's Aquaman, Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman, Henry Cavill's Superman and Ben Affleck's Batman, as they fight to save the world from Lex Luthor's evil corporation, LexCorp. 

Madame Tussauds Orlando is issuing a challenge to the bravest of Justice League fans (Image via LoupDargent.info)

⏩ For tickets and more information, please visit madametussauds.com/orlando.

SOURCE: Madame Tussauds

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