September 2024
Karen Ensle EdD, RDN, FAND, CFCS
Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Union County
Physical activity, along with a balanced diet, will help you manage your weight. Avoiding excess weight puts less stress on your joints, especially in your knees, hips, and feet. This can help reduce the wear and tear that may lead to osteoarthritis later in life.
A joint is where two or more bones are joined together. Joints can be rigid, like the joints between the bones in your skull, or movable, like knees, hips, and shoulders. Many joints have cartilage on the ends of the bones where they come together. Healthy cartilage helps you move by allowing bones to glide over one another. It also protects bones by preventing them from rubbing against each other.
Some people get arthritis which is often used to refer to any disorder that affects the joints. Although you might think arthritis affects only older people, it can affect young people, too. Here are some different forms of arthritis:
Osteoarthritis is a common type of arthritis which is seen especially among older people. In osteoarthritis, the surface cartilage in the joints breaks down and wears away, allowing the bones to rub together. This causes pain, swelling, and loss of motion in the joint. Sometimes, it can be triggered by an injury to a joint, such as a knee injury that damages the cartilage.
Rheumatoid arthritis is known as an autoimmune disease because the immune system attacks the tissues of the joints as if they were disease-causing germs. This results in pain, swelling, stiffness, and loss of function in the joints. People with rheumatoid arthritis may also feel tired and sick with fever. It can cause permanent damage to the joints and sometimes affects the heart, lungs, or other organs.
Gout is a form of arthritis that is caused by a buildup of uric acid crystals in the joints, most commonly in the big toe. It can be extremely painful. There are several effective treatments for gout that can reduce disability and pain.
Juvenile arthritis is a term often used to describe arthritis in children. Children can develop almost all types of arthritis that affect adults, but the most common type that affects children is juvenile idiopathic arthritis.
Other forms of arthritis may be associated with diseases like lupus, fibromyalgia, psoriasis, or certain infections. In addition, other diseases might affect the bones or muscles around a joint, causing problems in that joint. Keeping your joints healthy will allow you to run, walk, jump, play sports, and do the other things you like to do. Take these small steps to make sure you include physical activity, a balanced diet, avoid injuries, and get plenty of sleep which will help you stay healthy and keep your joints healthy too.
See the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) website for more information.