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Arthritis Facts - Part Two
Three types of exercise are best if you have arthritis:
Range-of-motion exercises, like dancing, relieve stiffness, keep you flexible, and help you keep moving your joints.
Strengthening exercises, such as weight training, will keep or add to muscle strength. Strong muscles support and protect your joints. Aerobic or endurance exercises, like bicycle riding, make your heart and arteries healthier, help prevent weight gain, and improve the overall working of your body. Aerobic exercise also may lessen swelling in some joints.
The National Institute on Aging (NIA) has a free 80-page booklet on how to start and stick with a safe exercise program. The Institute also has a 48-minute companion video. Before beginning any exercise program, talk with your doctor or health care worker.
Other Things to Do
Along with exercise and weight control, there are other ways to ease the pain around joints. You might find comfort by applying heat or cold, soaking in a warm bath, or swimming in a heated pool. Your doctor may suggest surgery when damage to your joints becomes disabling or when other treatments do not help with pain. Surgeons can repair or replace these joints with artificial (man-made) ones. In the most common operations, doctors replace hips and knees.
Unproven Remedies
Many people with arthritis try remedies that have not been tested or proved to be helpful. Some of these, such as snake venom, are harmful. Others, such as copper bracelets, are harmless, but also unproven.
How can you tell that a remedy may be unproven?
The remedy claims that a treatment, like a lotion or cream, works for all types of arthritis and other diseases, Scientific support comes from only one research study, or The label has no directions for use or warning about side effects.
Areas for Further Research
Recent studies suggest that Chinese acupuncture may ease OA pain for some people. Others try dietary supplements, such as Glucosamine and Chondriotin. Research now shows that these two dietary supplements may help lessen your OA pain. Scientists are studying alternative treatments, such as these two supplements, to find out how they work and if they keep the joint changes caused by arthritis from getting worse. More information is needed before anyone can be sure.
Talk to Your Doctor
Most importantly, do not take for granted that your pain and arthritis are just part of growing older normally. You and your doctor can work together to safely lessen the pain and stiffness that might be troubling you and to prevent more serious damage to your joints. For More Information on Arthritis: http://www.aHealthInfo.com
About the author:
Larry L. Taylor is a Nutrition and Healthy Living advocate who has authored many articles on Health, Nutrition, Fitness, etc. For more HEALTH related articles visit: http://www.aHealthInfo.com
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