3 Tips for Osteoarthritis Pain
Osteoarthritis affects millions of people around the world. This ubiquitous issue causes pain and dysfunction for people of all demographics, but it particularly affects older individuals.
In this article, we’ll take a look at osteoarthritis symptoms, osteoarthritis treatment, and highlight three key tips for dealing with this issue.
Osteoarthritis Symptoms
Before we get into the specific symptoms associated with osteoarthritis, it makes sense to spend a little bit of time defining the term “osteoarthritis” itself. Taking the word in its constituent parts:
- “Osteo” refers to the bones of the body.
- “Arthro” refers to joints of the body.
- “Itis” refers to inflammation.
Therefore, osteoarthritis is inflammation of the joints and bones of the body. This issue is caused by the grinding of bones on top of one another due to wear and tear of said joints over time. As you can imagine, this leads to a number of intuitive symptoms such as:
- Pain.
- Swelling.
- Decreased strength.
While some arthritis sufferers will experience other symptoms, these are the main issues one can expect to experience as a result of the condition.
Osteoarthritis Treatment
Common treatments for osteoarthritis typically involve masking the pain through medications or other, similar treatments. However, this doesn’t solve the underlying issue.
For instance, some clinicians will recommend hot packs or cold packs to treat the issue. Others may use ultrasound therapy. Again, these modalities are mere band-aid fixes.
In the next section, we’ll take a look at three top tips for dealing with osteoarthritis.
3 Tips for Arthritis Sufferers
These tips should be included as part of a comprehensive plan to treat your arthritis symptoms. Also, not all of these tips will work for everyone, so be sure to change course if they aren’t helping you feel better!
Tip #1: Exercise Regularly
Moving as much as possible may seem counterintuitive as a treatment for arthritis, but it really helps. Specifically, you should try to complete at least 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise five days per week along with two days of resistance training.
This will help to keep your whole body strong so that you can tackle whatever life throws at you each week.
Tip #2: Eat a Healthy Diet
The foods you eat can have a massive impact on your health. For instance, some foods will lead to increased inflammation while others can actually decrease inflammation. There is wide debate about which diet is optimal for humans. However, there are some foods that are almost exclusively considered to be a poor choice for good health.
These foods include prepackaged, sugary, chemical-laden choices you see in the impulse aisle of the store. Avoiding these foods can go a long way for your health and your arthritis-related issues. On the other side of the coin, adding in whole foods, like good meat, vegetables, and fruits can help significantly with your health issues as well.
By working on your diet, you can improve your arthritis symptoms significantly. Consult with a qualified nutritionist or other healthcare provider if you aren’t sure where to start with dietary changes!
Tip #3: See Your Chiropractor Often
Chiropractic care can be particularly helpful for arthritis sufferers. By manipulating various parts of the spine, your chiropractor can help to loosen up your joints, making you feel better all over.
The treatments you receive from your chiropractor can often reduce your pain in both the short term and the long term. Best of all, chiropractic treatments are affordable, widely available, and barely take any time out of your day.
If you’re looking for ways to better manage your osteoarthritis symptoms, consider chiropractic care. Anchor Health Chiropractic, your go-to Noblesville chiropractor, can help you feel better today. Book your session now!
