Rheumatoid Arthritis Support Group
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, inflammatory, multisystem, autoimmune disorder. It is a disabling and painful condition which can lead to substantial loss of mobility due to pain and joint destruction. The disease is also systemic in that it often also affects many extra-articular tissues throughout the body including the skin, blood vessels, heart, lungs, and...
Before taking MTX I rarely got a cold or flu. Maybe one every other year at very most.
Now I'm almost like clock work a cold, flu or walking pneumonia every year. Since our immune systems are compromised due to the MTX is there anything anyone taking to help boost their immune systems to stave off the common colds or flu's?
Now I'm almost like clock work a cold, flu or walking pneumonia every year. Since our immune systems are compromised due to the MTX is there anything anyone taking to help boost their immune systems to stave off the common colds or flu's?
Best thing to do is wash your hands often, use hand disinfectant whenever you have the chance, and avoid getting in the direct line fire of people with coughs and sneezes and little kids with grimy hands. You should be able to take flu shots (though not the "live" nasal form of the vaccine). I read that the flu season has not really kicked in yet this year but that the current flu vaccine formulation is well matched to what are thought to be the current strains circulating.
Thanks for the comment rackerby! This was EXACTLY my point to a friend of mine!
I would also chalk this up to another post that was added a few weeks ago discussing how family & friends don't understand our disease. He kept re-iterating, "No there has to be a way of boosting your immune system" I kept telling him, "No that's the point of the MTX & other medications we take is to control & or reduce the immune system to the point where it's not attacking our joints".
So frustrating trying to explain to people who THINK they know what they're talking about.
In my experience I tend to get the flu a good month or 2 before the "flu season" truly kicks in. For whatever reason i'm very subseptible in the month of December. I seem to always be sick a good 2 weeks before Christmas & recover during the Christmas holidays.
http://www.emergenc.com/products#emergen-c-immune
Might be worth a try!
I do not shake hands with anyone. I wash my hands very often. I will never ever drink out of a water fountain. I do not take wine at church - first it is wine that I have to avoid, and everyone has to take from the same cup. I sit in the very front pew, where nobody else is around me, so do not have to shake hands with anyone. Our children live at least 4 hours away, one lives on the other side of the country. I do not see our grandchildren very often, and thankfully they are really healthy kids, so not to many worries about that.
On the other hand, have osteo arthritis, just had shoulder surgery to remove tendonitis, bursitis, bone spur, and shaved off bone from shoulder to make room for my arm to move easier. My platelet count is excessive, so have had many tests, including bone marrow biopsy, which the end result is - I have to many platelets, no particular reason other than probably RA. They found a nodule in my lung in the CAT scan, they think it is nothing serious, will get that checked again in 4 months. So, I have now added a hemotologist to the list of Drs that I see.
It could be worse................