When you were younger, you would work out for hours on end, and you considered yourself to be very fit. Good times. One day you stop going to the gym, procrastination happens, and you put it off until tomorrow. ‘Tomorrow’ has been a few years now and you’re starting to develop a gut, and you do not remotely like it. The horror! You wake up the next morning and head to the local gym, but the pain in your joints is too much; this has never happened before, and you are becoming quite alarmed. As people get older aching joints seem to increase.
Causes Of Joint Pain
Some joint pains occur naturally as a result of aging, and the joints and bones become weaker. Here are some of the causes of joint pain:
1. Osteoarthritis
This is also one of the most common joint diseases. It can also be referred to as degenerative arthritis. It mostly affects the hips, knees, neck, and lower back. As this condition progresses, it causes the cartilage that covers the bones to break down gradually, causing unmeasurable pain and stiffness of the joints.
2. Gout
This is arthritis that causes some bouts of intense pain periodically, they’re known as gout attacks. During this time, a patient suffering from gout normally experiences some swelling that occurs in the affected joints. If it goes untreated, gout causes permanent damage to your joints and other tissues.
3. Bursitis
This is also one of the common causes of pain in the joints. This conditions comes about when the bursa, this is the sac that holds the lubricating fluid that helps reduce friction, becomes irritated or inflamed. This condition comes about from the repetitive actions, but also can be caused by trauma to one’s bursa.
4. Arthritis
This has got to be the most common type of disability. In the United States, more than 50 million adults were diagnosed with arthritis. You may have heard about arthritis, but what you don’t know is that this refers to 100 or more diseases that affect joints, mostly as people get older.
5. Tumor of the bone
This occurs in rare cases, and the cause of pain may be due to a bone tumor. Most of these tumors are non-cancerous, so that shouldn’t worry you. However, if the tumor is pretty bad, it then causes a lot of pain in the bone, loss of appetite, and weight loss. It can spread to other parts of the body if left untreated.
Treatment For Joint Pain
There are treatments for these pains. After a diagnosis, the doctor’s main aim will be to reduce any pain and inflammation so as to preserve the joint’s function. These treatment options include but not limited to:
- Medications
- Topical agents
- Injections
- Physical therapy
- Home care
There are exercises that you can manage with joint pains, and they also help with easing the pain. These include:
- Yoga – yoga helps the people with aching joints because it combines meditation with gentle stretching. You’re also advised to stick to the low impact exercise.
- Pilates – These exercises are great for strengthening the support muscles, as well as stabilize joints.
- Water exercises – this is one of the best ways to help ease any form of joint pain. Walking around in the water in a pool or using the underwater treadmill are some of the best forms of exercises without causing any excess impact on your joints. If you’re a germaphobe, maybe you would consider contacting a team of inground pools Mobile for the construction of a pool in your backyard.
- Walking – This is the best exercise for most people, whether you have joint pains or not. It also helps improve your health in several ways. If you have joint problems, this exercise can strengthen muscles, bones. and ease pains in the joints.
- Stretching – This low impact exercise is great because it can even be done sitting down. You get to target the joints that you want to flex.
If you feel any discomfort in any of your joints, visit your doctor today for a proper diagnosis. But in the meantime, if you’ve been seated for too long, get up, and stretch for a few minutes.
Author Bio:
Mikkie Mills is a freelance writer and expert in health and fitness. When she isn’t writing she can usually be found reading a good book or hitting the gym.