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When 80 percent of Filipinos develop some degree of arthritis by the age of 60, you have to wonder why the condition is even considered a disease. Maybe we should just think of it as a natural consequence of aging, like wrinkles and gray hair. But then young children sometimes get arthritis, as do teenagers and athletes in their prime. In fact, the average age at which arthritis is diagnosed is only 47.
Arthritis is a disease all right, and it can strike in many forms. When most people talk of “arthritis” however, they’re talking about either osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis—by far the two most common. Both disrupt the normal functioning of the body’s joints or the tissue surrounding those joints (as do all forms of arthritis).
Osteoarthritis does damage in a wear-and-tear, “degenerative” way. Rheumatoid arthritis does its harm by causing inflammation.
The good news is that research is beginning to show that much can be done to discourage certain types of arthritis from occurring in the first place especially osteoarthritis.
Osteoarthritis: Nothing Inevitable About It
Osteoarthritis, the number one offender causes pain that tends to be made worse by strenuous activity and relieved by rest. Morning stiffness may occur, but it generally lasts no longer than about a half hour. The pain tends to be localized to one or several joints usually of a weight-bearing type—for example, the hips, knees, ankles, feet or back.
“Osteo” causes deterioration of the cartilage between bones of weight-bearing joints. This, in turn, can cause bones to rub together which causes the body to respond by putting out more calcium for the growth of new bone. Joints begin to find themselves with more bone than they can handle. Some of it end up forming fingerlike “spurs” called osteophytes. These osteophytes can inhibit joint movement or can chip and leave deposits within joints to aggravate joint movement even further.
What sets this destructive scenario into motion? Dr. Harris McIlwain, author of Winning with Arthritis says that people used to think that osteoarthritis was strictly a wear-and-tear disease brought on by high levels of physical activity or simply age. But now he said, it seems there’s often a precipitating factor, either an injury or the chronic overuse of a joint. The joints are like any other part of the body in that there are right and wrong ways to treat them. If more of us could learn to use rather than abuse our joints, osteoarthritis might not be such a widespread problem.
Use versus abuse
Here are some tips for being kinder and gentler to your joints, all of which may help prevent osteoarthritis. Even if you already have the disease, these strategies can help minimize your discomfort.
Be active—but not insane. Just because some physical activity is good doesn’t mean more is better. Learn to respect your body’s limitations in terms of both the frequency and the intensity with which you exercise. Three 20-to 30 minute periods of exercise a week are enough to maintain good cardiovascular health. If you go beyond that, pay close attention to your joints to be sure they’re not complaining about going along with you.
Regard pain not as the path to success but rather as a roadblock telling you to ease up. It’s common to feel some muscular soreness after you’ve exercised, but it should disappear within a few days. Pain that persists is the kind to watch out for. It means that you’re overexerting or that you’ve got a problem in a joint that repeated activity is only going to make worse. Cut back or change to a less stressful activity.
Learn the right ways, not the wrong. Proper technique is crucial, whether you’re playing tennis, lifting weights or jogging around the block. An activity that is not unduly stressful to a joint if done properly can be downright abusive if done improperly. It’s well worth it to get proper instruction. You’ll be more successful in your sporting activities, and also more durable.
Don’t defeat your feet. Most sporting activities start with the feet, so cushion them well. By wearing properly cushioned, shock-absorbent shoes, you can reduce stress on your weight-bearing joints. It’s also important to wear shoes that fit well and are specifically designed for the activity for which they’re being worn.
Maintain a reasonable body weight. Research shows that excess weight can attack the weight-bearing joints in two ways. Not only do those extra pounds put undue stress on joints directly, they also discourage the kind of active lifestyle needed to strengthen the muscles responsible for protecting the joints.
Rheumatoid arthritis: The unpredictable one
Rheumatoid arthritis, the number two offender, causes pain that tends to worsen following periods of inactivity and to lessen after moderate exercise. Morning stiffness generally lasts longer than a half hour. Pain affects not just one or two joints but numerous joints, and usually on both sides of the body. And the joint pain may be accompanied by other more generalized discomforts.
Rheumatoid arthritis can be especially problematic because it tends to be a whole body disease, capable of causing not just painful joints but also fever, weight loss, fatigue, anemia and even depression. Precisely why this happens remains unclear, although the prevailing suspicion is that rheumatoid arthritis in some way causes the body’s immune system to turn on itself. Harmful substances are released within the joints that not only harm the silklike sheathing (synovial membrane) responsible for keeping joints free-moving but also spark toxic reactions elsewhere in the body.
Also characteristic of rheumatoid arthritis is the youthfulness of its target audience. The disease tends to strike people in their twenties through forties. For reasons unknown, it is three times more likely to strike women than men.
“We’re making advances, but rheumatoid arthritis remains a mysterious disease,” says Dr. McIlwain. “Sometimes it goes no farther than causing joint pain, but other times it’s more problematic. Unlike osteoarthritis, which is fairly predictable, rheumatoid arthritis is not.” Rheumatoid arthritis, because it is such a mystery, is also difficult to know how to prevent.
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