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Arthritis, one of
the most common disorders that can affect anyone, is actually a complex
disorder comprising several conditions, all of which sharing one common
symptom: arthritis joint pain. There are over a hundred different types of
arthritis joint pain but the most common are osteoarthritis (OA), rheumatoid
arthritis (RA), and gout.
For most patients suffering from arthritis joint pain, living with this kind
of condition means a life-long task punctuated with nothing but agony.
However, this does not have to be the case with you. While it is true that
most forms of arthritis are irreversible (as it is impossible to grow back a
cartilage), there are steps that you can take in order to minimize the pain
that is usually associated with this debilitating disease.
Protect Your Joints
Although arthritis can strike anyone at any time of their life, most cases
of arthritis occurs in people who are older. Aging appears to be a major
contributive factor to arthritis joint pains – a fact that is understandable
as everyone goes through a considerable amount of wear and tear in their
joints as they grow older.
In order to prevent further damage and worse pain, be extra careful as you
go about your daily routine. Below are some tips to help you protect your
joints, recommended by the Mayo Clinic:
* Save your weaker joints and use the strongest joint instead. For instance,
you can carry things with your palm open. That way, you can distribute the
weight equally over your forearm. Also, instead of lifting things off the
counter or workbench, you can just slide them along the surface.
* Save your little finger. Don’t put too much stress on your little finger
by moving your hands in such a way as to push the other fingers towards your
little finger. Instead, try brushing bread crumbs off the table with the
palm facing you and the little finger resting on the table.
* Avoid stressing your thumb and fingers by making a tight fist or holding
items for too long. You can do this by holding a book, mug, or other things
in the palm of your hand, instead of holding them with your fingers. If
you’ve been reading a book for some time, use a book holder instead of
continually supporting the book with your fingers.
* Exercise those
joints. Freedom of motion is one of the things that you may have to forsake
if you suffer from arthritis joint pain. The longer you suffer, the shorter
range of movement you will have at your disposal. You can avoid this by
moving your joints through their full pain-free range of motion. Do this at
least once a day and observe the results.
* Learn to
understand arthritis joint pain. Of course, if you have arthritis, it is
most likely that you will experience arthritis joint pain. However, try to
distinguish between arthritis joint pain and pain that results from
overusing a joint. When you are able to do this, you can determine what
specific activity that caused you joint pain and avoid doing it in the
future.
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