Stay in Motion
It’s the golden rule of joint health: The more you move, the less stiffness you’ll have. Whether you’re reading, working, or watching TV, change positions often. Take breaks from your desk or your chair and get active.
Quit Smoking
Smoking and tobacco use poses risk to your health from cardiovascular problems, chronic bronchitis, cancer and can even hamper your joints too. Tobacco also causes increased inflammation throughout the body and can make it harder for your body to recover and heal from injury. It is not easy to quit smoking but an important fact worth noting is that within eight hours of quitting, the carbon monoxide level in your blood will return to normal while the oxygen level will increase. If you’re thinking of quitting, do plan and seek support to increase your chance of success.
Shed Some Pounds
Your body size affects some of the strain on your hips, knees, and back. Even a little weight loss can help. Every pound you lose, takes 4 pounds of pressure off the knees. Seek your doctor’s advice on how best for you to get started.
Drink Water
Our cartilage is kept lubricated by a liquid known as synovial fluid. In fact, our cartilage is approximately 60% made of water. As a result, we must keep our bodies hydrated when our joints are damaged. If we don’t, the production of our synovial fluid will be reduced, and we increase our risk of friction pain and cartilage deterioration. Drinking water can help to improve your joint health and lessen the pain caused by conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis and gout.
Healthy Diet
Our diet is really important when it comes to our joints because what we eat can impact how our joints feel – some foods can help to protect our joints whilst others can make joint pain worse. Avoid eating inflammatory foods such as sugar, dairy, saturated fats, and meat as they aggravate joint pain whilst foods that are anti-inflammatory such as fruit, vegetables, and whole grains can help to prevent joint pain caused by inflammation.
Consume your supplements
Glucosamine and SAM-e have a lot of benefits and there are many medical research results that show their many benefits. Consult your doctor if you plan to give supplements a try, as they will be able to provide the best advice base on your health condition.