The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-07-17
Diet And Rheumatism
By H. ADDINGTON BRUCE

New hope for not a few sufferers from rheumatism is held out in clinical report by Boston physician, John A. Turnbull. It involves a return, though from a novel point of view, to the old theory that rheumatism's essential cause often is found in a faulty diet.
 Of recent years this theory has been pretty generally superseded by the so-called focal infection theory, according to which rheu- matism is the product of a slow poisoning by disease-germs that have invaded the sys- tenn from abscesses and pus pockets in teeth, tonsils, and the sinuses of the face. To cure rheumatism, consequently, it should only be necessary to detect and remove such causes of constant infection.
 And as a matter of fact thousands of cases have been cured by this means. But also it has happened, repeatedly, that rheumatism has persisted even after the removal of diseased teeth or tonsils, and that it occurs in per- sons seemingly quite free from any focus of l infection.
 In the latter case it has been assumed that some focus must after all be present, though undetected. In the former the com mon assumption is that the teeth or tonsils have been removed too late. Bearing these assumptions out, to all appearance, is the fact that the most rigid dieting, in the way of excluding the acid-forming foodstuffs that used to be thought the sole excitants of rheu- matism, may bring not the least improve ment.
 Now comes Dr. Turnbull with the sug. gestioYf that, in these puzzling and most re- l sistant cases, diet may none the less be the real cause of trouble. As he sees it, rheu- matism often is the sign of a poisoning, not by disease-germs but by some food or foods ordinarily harmless but for special reason harmful to the rheumatic patient eating them.
 In other words, this Boston medical man classifies rheumatism as being at times, like asthma, hay fever, and eczema, an end-result of what is professionally known as anaphy- laxis. And he would attack it, in all cases where focal infection cannot reasonably be blamed, by forbiddine the eating of foods shown by skin tests to be productive of un- favorable reactions.
 To support his position he cites instances of cures effected by this means. I have space for only one, the case of woman of sixty three who, when Dr. Turnbull first saw her, was badly crippled by rheumatism of long standing. Skin tests indicated that she was unpleasantly affected by quite a variety of common foods, and she was instructed to make it a rule to avoid these.
 Here is the result, in Dr. Turnbulrs own words
 within four weeks pain decreased in all the joints; swelling subsided within six weeks; in eight weeks time, all swelling and tenderness had disappeared, the patient be- ing able to walk without discomfort" l But, observe
 After four months freedom from arthritis, she overstepped her dietary restrictions by indulging in turkey, potato and squash, all foods to which she gave a positive cutaneous reaction. Within five hours she experienced pain in all the formerly affected joints.
 Walking became difficult, and there was generally bodily aching. This condition was relieved in forty eight hours when the sen sitizing proteins had been eliminated from l the system"
 It is not to be inferred. that hereby the riddle of rheumatism has been completely solved But certainly it seems valid infer ence that Dr. Turnbulfs findings constitute real forward step in the treatment of this most painful disease.