Causes of rheumatoid arthritis explained simply

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The causes of rheumatoid arthritis are still largely unknown

In this article I will attempt to talk about the causes of rheumatoid arthritis in plain English so to cut out any technical language that is hard for the average person to understand.

A lot of people don’t realize that there may be several causes of rheumatoid arthritis and that this complicated disease may have more than just one trigger. Although it is universally accepted that rheumatoid arthritis is an auto-immune disease, not all scientists agree with this theory. Some are suggesting that rheumatoid arthritis may actually be caused by a bacterial infection or even the result of a viral attack. However this certainly doesn’t mean that rheumatoid arthritis is in any way contagious.

Another of the causes of rheumatoid arthritis could possibly be genetic. This theory makes sense as the disease can run in families, but then there are environmental issues such as diet and lifestyle that could also play a part, as family groups tend to eat the same things and have similar habits. For example one group of scientists claims that smoking can have an effect on a persons likelihood of developing the disease.

Hormones are also being suggested as one of the possible causes of rheumatoid arthritis. This is also likely as more women have the disease than men. Another fact that supports this theory is that when women become pregnant, the disease may improve and breastfeeding can also affect the severity. Taking the contraceptive pill can also influence the progress of rheumatoid arthritis, which does give the hormone theory a lot of weight.

The one thing we can all agree on is the causes of rheumatoid arthritis are unknown and not one thing to date has actually been proved to be responsible. It is also possible that what triggers the disease may vary from person to person. It is also possible that there may be more than one cause in a single person, a build up of factors for this disease to take hold.

Even though all the answers are sill not available to us, one thing is becoming more obvious. Rheumatoid arthritis likely develops as a result of an interaction of many triggers. Researchers are trying to understand these different factors and how they work together. I am also a firm believer that a positive attitude can influence any disease for the better and a negative attitude can make certain diseases worse or even cause them.

We also know that we must concentrate on building up our health and immune systems regardless of the causes of rheumatoid arthritis, so that we can give ourselves the best chance of successfully managing the disease and hopefully achieve a remission.

I hope I have helped you have a better understanding of the causes of rheumatoid arthritis and not totally confused you. It is important to have some understanding of these possible causes of rheumatoid arthritis, so you can perhaps relate one of them to an event or  situation which might have been responsible for the onset of the disease in your own life.