Avoiding Arthritis

Arthritis has long been associated with minor afflictions of an aging person. The most common cause of a painful joint is osteoarthritis. Another arthritis common is gout. Gout is a joint disease marked by intense, burning pain and inflammation of the joint. There is however, some way to avoid arthritis:

1.) Daily normal activities like walking and regular visits to the gym or doing popular aerobic exercises in the home setting are doable preventive measures. Regular exercises tone and strengthen muscles around joints and help protect the joints. Even if some arthritides are inherited, tone and health muscles help maintain motion and lessen pain.

2.) Avoid excessive alcohol intake and food binges. These practices bring painful gout attacks for those who have gout.

3.) Stop smoking. Data show that rheumatoid arthritis and buerger’s disease are associated with this vice. These are also known risk factors for the development of osteoporosis even among males.

4.) More than three cups of coffee a day is a know risk factor for the development of osteoporosis so avoid excessive coffee intake.

5.) See your rheumatologist early especially if there is a family history of arthritis.

Fighting Preventing Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis affects millions of people, primarily women worldwide. This disease is characterized mostly by backache, bone fracture from minor injuries from the spine, hip and wrist, curving of the spine and loss of height. The condition causes the bones in your body to lose calcium and minerals slowly over the years. The bones in your body are not afflicted with any disease, it just your bones have lost their density. Women are affected the most because they go through menopause and lose even more bone than normal as their body produces less and less estrogen making your bones brittle and easily broken aside from making you look shrunken or humped.

There are many ways to fight osteoporosis. Aside from taking multivitamins or calcium tablets, moving around helps a lot. Inactivity increases bone loss so engage in weight lifting exercises like walking, bicycling or even aerobics even for just 3 to 4 hours a week. But before doing any strenuous activity, consult your doctor or a fitness instructor for advice. Increase your calcium intake daily. Your body will absorb more calcium from foods rather than calcium supplements. Calcium rich foods like cheese, milk and dark leafy vegetables.

Avoid eating too much protein rich foods as these hampers the body’s ability to use calcium. Sunlight exposure also helps the body absorb calcium faster. Quit smoking since this will lower ones estrogen levels and drinking alcohol too much may affect the bones proper growth function. Drinking too much coffee can also strip away the bones calcium layer protection. Fluoride has also been found to protect not only our teeth but also our bones.

Misinterpreting Back and Joint Pains

Most of us view back pain and join pain as the inevitable consequence of old age or as a result from getting injured. But pain is one way our body is telling us that there might be something wrong with us. But most dismiss them as just the effects of old age or injury. Pay very attention to them and don't ignore the pain. There are life threatening diseases that mimic these pains and its important to identify them early on so they can be properly treated. here are some serious diseases and conditions that can create back and joint pain.

1.) Prostate cancer and abdominal problems - Prostate and pancreatic cancers and kidney stones can create back pain, often with a sharp sensation in the middle or lower back. These diagnosis may often be missed because people don't normally associate back pain with cancer or kidney stones.

2.) Osteoporosis - Weakening and thinning of the bones is often age related, but it's now happening to younger people to due to the lack of vitamin D which is usually from drinking milk since most young people today would rather rink soda than a glass of milk. This can lean small fractures to the spine and other areas causing pain.

3.) Lupus - This chronic autoimmune disease typically appears as a dark butterfly rash on the face accompanied by severe joint pain. It is diagnosed with blood test and treated with anti-inflammatory medicines.

4.) Swollen Joints - This can be a sign of joint infection. Often a sample of the joint fluid is taken for testing. If an infection such as staph is present, antibiotics are prescribed.

5.) Bone Cancer - Pain can be caused by bone cancers as well as other cancers that spread to the bones. Common targets are the spine and the rib cage.

6.) Lyme Disease - This conditions is usually transfered by ticks. It often surfaces as a joint pain, with or without a rash. If detected early, Lyme disease can be treated with antibiotics.

Back Owners Guide

There is no simple answer to back pain. Your doctor can guide you on the road to recovery. But a healthy, pain free back is almost always up to you. Only you ca improve your posture and learn ways to prevent back strain in your daily life. And only you can follow a daily exercise program to build strong supporting abdominal, leg and back muscles. You'll need to keep the muscles surrounding your spine strong and flexible. This will help your back three natural curves stay in alignment.

The most common back problems occur when disk in the spine tear, bulge, rupture, or wear out. Each of these makes it harder for disk to cushion the vertebrae and absorb shock. As a result, the area can become inflamed and spinal nerves can become irritated. The resulting pain often makes back muscles tighten to protect the spine. This adds to the pain you feel.

The annulus is the disk's tough outer ring. A sudden movement may cause a tiny tear in an annulus. Nearby ligaments my also stretch. Because the annulus and ligaments contain nerve endings. A torn annulus can cause back pain. As disk wears out, its spongy center can put pressure on the annulus. This can cause back pain and may force the disk to bulge or herniate. A ruptured disk or a slipped disk is one whose nucleus has pushed out through the annulus. The nucleus can then press on or pinch spinal nerves. If the resulting pain radiates down the back of the buttock, thigh and leg.

In rare cases, a young person may have osteoarthritis due to an injury. But in most cases, osteoarthritis is just part of the aging process. As disk wears out over time, growths of bone form on the vertebrae. These spurs may irritate spinal nerves and inflame the area. This often cause back pain. Good posture, exercise, and proper use of your back may slow the development of osteoarthritis.