Exercise essential for joints

Regular exercise for joints is important, as it strengthens the particular muscles that support the joint. Although it may hurt to move the joint, but inactivity can cause the joint to become stiff and even more painful. Moving the joints will also maintain strength in the muscles that support them, which will protect them from further damage and pain. Low-impact activity like walking, swimming or biking are recommended. Exercises increase blood supply to joints and surrounding areas.

Lose weight to overcome joint pain

Losing weight will slow the progression of osteoarthritis, by taking excess physical stress off your already painful joint.
The best way to lose extra weight is by reducing the intake of calories and fat. Aim for low-fat, high fibre diet. Aim to improve calcium absorption performance & other chronic disorders in which calcium may have a protective role.

Weight bearing exercise

For most people who have osteoporosis, brisk walking is ideal. It can be done anywhere, requires no special equipment, and carries minimal risk of injury. If walking is too difficult or painful, workouts on a stationary exercise cycle are a good alternative.

The full benefits of walking come from a regular schedule-at least 15 to 20 minutes 3 to 4 days per week but needs to start modestly. Start at the level which is comfortable for the patient. Five-minute walks are fine at first, but increase their length by 1 minute every other time, until the optimal exercise level is reached.

Lifting weights for stronger bones

Lifting weights or using strength-training machines strengthens bones all over your body, especially if you exercise all of the major muscle groups in your legs, arms, and trunk.
Following a program designed by your doctor or a physical therapist is important. Joining a gym or fitness facility is a good way to begin because there you may have access to trainers who can advise you on proper technique.

Defense against osteoporosis

Bone responds to weight training the same way muscle does, by becoming stronger and more dense. Building strong bones can be the best defense against osteoporosis.

Achieving peak bone mass

By age 18, skeletal growth is nearly complete, with minor accumulations in bone density occurring until around the age of 30. In women, between the ages of 30 and menopause, there tends to be minimal change in total bone mass. But in the first few years after menopause, most women experience rapid bone loss that slows, but persists, throughout the postmenopausal years.

Flexibility of bones

Our bones are not very flexible. They aren´t supposed to bend. The places where two bones come together are called joints. Cartilage protects these bones from rubbing together and causing a lot of pain.

Ways of enhancing the bones

Bones react to load by gradually growing stronger & denser. Recent studies have shown that the risk of osteoporosis is lower for people who are active, and especially those who do load-bearing, or weight-bearing activities at least three times a week.

The best exercises are weight-lifting, jogging, hiking, stair-climbing, step aerobics, dancing, racquet sports, and other activities that require your muscles to work against gravity. Swimming and simply walking, although good for cardiovascular fitness, are not the best exercises for building bone.

Drugs in osteoarthritis

Glucosamine and chondroitin administered by a certified orthopedic doctor (after diagnosis) helps to stimulate the synthesis of new cartilage and at the same time inhibit degrative enzymes that destroy cartilage.
This helps to normalize the cartilage matrix, in essence, treating the disease at cellular level.

Bone Mineral Density test (BMD)

See your doctor for a Bone Mineral Density Test, after age 50. A Bone Mineral Density test (BMD) is the only way to diagnose osteoporosis and determine your risk for future fracture. Since osteoporosis can develop undetected for decades until a fracture occurs, early diagnosis is important.

Monitor your intake of beverages

Reduce soft drink consumption. The phosphorus in soft drinks appears to have a deleterious effect on bone tissue. Colas & beverages with caffeine & phosphorus appear to cause bone resorption (problem for children & adults).

Identify the pain in joints

Chondromalacia literally means "softening of the cartilage", and Patellae means "the knee-cap". So Chondromalacia patellae means "softening of the articular cartilage of the knee-cap." The injury is common among girls aged 10 - 20 years. Correct rehabilitation is essential for this injury along with taping.

Exercise & bones

Studies suggest that physical activity is a strong determinant of peak bone mass. The benefits of activity are most pronounced in those areas of the skeleton under mechanical loads.

Factors contributing to osteoporosis

Osteoporosis can be the result of one or more of the three factors:
1) accelerated bone loss, e.g. in post-menopausal women or in elderly men
2) suboptimal bone growth during childhood and adolescence resulting in failure to reach peak bone mass; and
3) bone loss secondary to disease conditions or certain drug treatment. In the presence of osteoporosis, fractures can occur from normal lifting and bending, as well as from falls.
Furthermore, osteoporotic fractures, particularly vertebral fractures, can be associated with disabling pain.

What is osteoarthritis?

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a type of degenerative joint disorder, which manifests as a failure of a diarthrodial joint. Often described as “wear and tear”, osteoarthritis, involves a complex degeneration of the joints.
In fact the main problem in osteorathritis is the degeneration of the articular cartilage that covers the joint.