With age comes wisdom, as many would claim. All those years of experience will eventually bring some rewards, mostly in the form of lessons learned and memories well lived. Sadly, these are not the only bestowments that time would throw our way.
Arthritis, or chronic pains in the joints, is a problem that as high as 94% of people above the age of 65 endure. It is one of those things that are almost quite certain in life. But unlike having grandchildren, the nifty benefits of a solid pension plan, and the liberty to enjoy your days after retirement, arthritis isn’t something you would look forward to.
The sad thing about arthritis, is although there are gadgets and products to help arthritis sufferers, is that there is no conclusive cure. Only therapies that would soothe the pain exist currently.
For all the advancements in medicine, no one has yet to find the Holy Grail, the fountain of youth.
Bones and ligaments that have been weakened by Father Time can no longer be restored to their previous vigour. This is quite unfortunate. Arthritis is something we just must live with.
Arthritis, you see, is not brought about by an acquired illness or an exposure to a contagion. It is the net result of cumulative years of neglect during our younger days. Deficiencies of essential nutrients and lack of required activity levels are the main culprits for this bane on baby boomers worldwide.
The fact of the matter is, arthritis can be avoided, or, at the very least, we can curtail the possibility of its manifesting in later years. The key to this is by taking diligent care of our bodies while we’re young, and our bones and limbs could still regenerate to good health.
Here are some practices to consider so that the effects of arthritis can be limited, if not eliminated:
Exercise regularly
This can never be undermined. Our bones and ligaments are built for activities, so be active! Regular exercise would ensure that our faculties are always in tiptop shape. They would never be rusty. Hence, there would be an extremely high likelihood that they’d be more resilient and resistant against chronic pains come senior age.
Modern practices claim that Yoga is an excellent choice of routine to help avoid the development of arthritis. Yoga can train our bodies to be flexible, which would greatly prevent rusty joints.
Eat a balanced diet
First, a balanced diet would help prevent obesity. Excess weight can weaken our joints simply because there would be so much burden to carry.
Stress can take its toll with time.
Second, a balanced diet would ensure that our bodies are fed the required nutrients. Primary among these is calcium, which is responsible for strong bones. We are what we eat, and when confronted with the danger of arthritis, a proper, balanced diet is our weapon against such a complication.
Drink lots of water
Water is what makes the joints slide. Dehydration would simply increase the friction in those areas with every activity, resulting in weaker bone connections that would make us more susceptible to arthritis a few years from now.
Try to avoid unnecessary stress on our joints
The level of caution required would depend on a case-to-case basis. Some works demand extraneous activities, and some don’t demand any at all.
For those where much bustle is required, much care should be exercised to avoid putting too much pressure on joints. Be wary of uncomfortable positions. Feeling discomfort is our body’s warning device telling us that all is not right with how we act.
The bottom line is you can combat arthritis for as long as you commence on such a pursuit before it’s too late. Take the necessary steps to prevent its development as early as possible, and you could live a life of retirement bliss free from the worries of chronic joint pains.