If you’re like many others, you might have found your symptoms online and slowly started to suspect you have Sjögren’s syndrome. You might have visited doctors for years, leaving undiagnosed and unsatisfied. Or maybe you did get a diagnosis, but were unhappy with the conventional medical treatment. You, and the millions of other Americans with autoimmune disease, are not alone. While no one has a cure for autoimmune disease (yet), there are many autoimmune warriors who are slowly but surely figuring out natural ways to handle chronic illness. This is part 4 in our series on natural remedies for autoimmune disease. Our earlier posts have focused on lupus, Hashimoto’s, and autoimmune skin conditions.
What is Sjögren’s Syndrome?
According to the American College of Rheumatology:
Sjögren’s syndrome is an inflammatory disease that can affect many different parts of the body, but most often affects the tear and saliva glands. Patients with this condition may notice irritation, a gritty feeling, or painful burning in the eyes. Dry mouth (or difficulty eating dry foods) and swelling of the glands around the face and neck are also common. Some patients experience dryness in the nasal passages, throat, vagina and skin. Swallowing difficulty and symptoms of acid reflux are also common.
“Primary” Sjögren’s syndrome occurs in people with no other rheumatic disease. “Secondary” Sjögren’s occurs in people who have another rheumatologic disease, most often systemic lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis.
Oh, and for the record, it’s pronounced “SHOW-grins”. As mentioned above, the most common Sjögren’s syndrome symptoms are:
- Dry eyes (sometimes including gritty or burning sensation)
- Dry mouth
- Dry skin
- Skin rashes
- Vaginal dryness
- Sore or cracked tongue
- Difficulty talking, chewing, or swallowing
- Dry nose
- Dry cough
- Digestive problems
- Joint and muscle pain
- Fatigue
Who is Affected by Sjögren’s Syndrome?
Most people who are diagnosed with Sjögren’s are women over the age of 40, but it can affect people of other genders and ages, too. It is more common among people who have another autoimmune disease (especially lupus or rheumatoid arthritis), since some people with autoimmune disease are predisposed to get additional autoimmune diseases.
What Causes Sjögren’s Syndrome?
Like many other autoimmune diseases, doctors are not sure what exactly causes Sjögren’s, but they suspect it’s usually caused by a combination of two factors:
- Genetic predisposition
- A trigger, such as exposure to a virus or bacteria
They also know that inflammation is one factor that contributes to the decrease in tears and saliva. As in other autoimmune diseases, symptoms are caused by one’s immune system mistakenly attacking their own tissues; in the case of Sjögren’s, the body attacks the glands that produce tears and saliva.
Natural Remedies for Sjögren’s Syndrome
Diet Changes
Food can either cause or reduce inflammation, so it is a huge factor in the severity of inflammatory conditions such as autoimmune disease. Here is one person’s story about how a healing diet helped her reduce and manage her Sjögren’s symptoms.
The Autoimmune Protocol is a plan designed to reduce inflammation and reduce symptoms of any autoimmune disease, including Sjögren’s. The protocol includes a strict elimination diet, which removes inflammatory and allergenic foods for a period of time, followed by slow reintroductions of those food to see which ones provoke reactions. Other parts of the plan include eating healing foods, reducing stress, getting a healthy balance of rest and activity, and more. Autoimmune Wellness and The Paleo Mom are both good starting points for learning about the Autoimmune Protocol.
Drink water!
This sounds obvious, but many people are chronically dehydrated. Be sure to drink plenty of water to help keep your cells, skin, and mucous membranes hydrated. How much is enough? Take your weight in pounds; divide that number in half. You need at least that many ounces of water per day, ideally more.
Licorice
Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) is demulcent, meaning it coats mucous membranes and helps keep them moisturized. It also seems to have effects similar to a mild cortisone, which is a steroid; it has some systemic anti-inflammatory effects and is beneficial for autoimmune conditions.1 It’s also very sweet, which some people like and others don’t. It can raise blood pressure in some, but not all, people, so monitor your blood pressure if it’s already high or after you’ve used licorice for a week or more. If you have a chronically dry mouth and throat, licorice tea would be a great way to deliver the herb directly to the affected mucous membranes.
Ophiopogon
Photo by Forest and Kim StarrYou might recognize ophiopogon, since it’s an ornamental plant, but the root is also a traditional Chinese herb used for moistening. One of its main indications in Chinese medicine is to increase Yin and promote the secretion of fluids from mucosal membranes. It’s also slightly cooling, so it would be great for someone who had both rheumatoid arthritis and Sjögren’s and wanted to cool off hot, inflamed joints. Ophiopogon is a plant genus, so there are multiple species used within the genus, but the most commonly used medicinal is Ophiopogon japonicus.
Sea Buckthorn
The seeds inside sea buckthorn berries (Hippophae spp.) are a natural source of omega-7 fatty acids, and moisturize mucous membranes from the inside out. They are especially effective for dry eyes. You can read more about sea buckthorn in our blog post dedicated to sea buckthorn for dry eye relief.
Good Fats
Healthy, anti-inflammatory fats, like omega-3 fatty acids and GLA, are beneficial for keeping your body properly moisturized and for managing inflammation. Be sure to eat fish a few times a week or take a fish oil supplement to get your omega-3s. Check out our guide to choosing seafood; it gives the rundown on which choices are healthiest and best for the environment. GLA is a special type of omega-6 fatty acid that is anti-inflammatory, unlike most other types of omega-6s. It is found in borage seed oil, evening primrose oil, and black currant oil.
Warm Compress
Some people with Sjögren’s find some relief for dry eyes by placing a washcloth soaked in warm water over their closed eyes. You can do a compress in the morning when you wake up, before bedtime, or both.
Eye Drops
You may find that using artificial tears without preservatives in them helps dry eyes. However, others do not find relief from these drops, so experiment for a week or two and see if they help you. Use the drops at least once every couple of hours for a week or two, then taper off their use. if you find that your symptoms worsen when you reduce the frequency of eye drops, they might be doing more harm than good.
Chewing Gum or Lozenges
Some people find that chewing or sucking on something helps produce more saliva and reduce dry mouth symptoms. Xylitol may be especially moistening for some people, and it also doesn’t promote tooth decay. Peach Vitamins sells natural gums and mints made with xylitol that may help keep your mouth from drying out. Other people might prefer throat lozenges, especially those made with moistening herbs such as slippery elm. Our store also carries classic slippery elm throat lozenges that can coat and soothe the throat, helping to offset dryness.
Humidifier
In a similar strategy to drinking plenty of water, using a humidifier can help keep enough water around you so your skin and mucous membranes don’t dry out quite as quickly.
Lotions, Oils, Salves
Be sure to apply lotions or oils as soon as you get out of the shower if you have dry skin, otherwise the hot water can dry your skin out more. You might choose lotions or salves that are infused with emollient herbs, such as comfrey root.
Do you have other natural remedies for Sjögren’s that have worked for you? If so, share them in the comments below!
References
- Kuhn, M. & Winston, D. (2008). Herbal therapy & supplements: A scientific and traditional approach. 2nd ed. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health.
- Other references are in clickable hyperlinks throughout the article.