here are four steps you can take now to prevent osteoarthritis or its progression. no. 1: control your weight if you are at a healthy weight maintaining that weight may be the most important thing you can do to prevent osteoarthritis. if you are overweight losing weight may be your best hedge against the disease. obesity is clearly a risk factor for developing osteoarthritis. data from the first national health and nutrition examination survey a program of studies designed to assess the health and nutrition of americans showed that obese women were nearly four times as likely as non-obese women to have osteoarthritis. the risk for obese men was nearly five times greater than for non-obese men. being overweight strains the joints particularly those that bear the body's weight such as the knees hips and joints of the feet causing the cartilage to wear away. if you already have osteoarthritis losing weight may help improve symptoms. no. 2: exercise if the muscles that run along the front of the thigh are weak research shows you have an increased risk of painful knee osteoarthritis. fortunately even relatively minor increases in the strength of these muscles the quadriceps can reduce the risk. if fear of joint pain after exercise keeps you from exercising try using heat and cold on painful joints or take pain relievers which may make it easier for you to exercise and stay active. the safest exercises are those that place the least body weight on the joints such as bicycling swimming and water exercise. light weight lifting exercises are another option but if you already have osteoarthritis first speak with your doctor. no. 3: avoid injuries or get them treated suffering a joint injury when you are young predisposes you to osteoarthritis in the same joint when you are older. injuring a joint as an adult may put the joint at even greater risk. people who injured their knee as an adult had a five times greater risk of osteoarthritis in the joint. to avoid joint injuries when exercising or playing sports the national institute of arthritis and musculoskeletal and skin diseases recommends the following: avoid bending knees past 90 degrees when doing half knee bends. keep feet as flat as possible during stretches to avoid twisting knees. when jumping land with your knees bent. do warm-up exercises before sports even less vigorous ones such as golf. cool down after vigorous sports. wear properly fitting shoes that provide shock absorption and stability. exercise on the softest surface available; avoid running on asphalt and concrete. if you have a joint injury it's important to get prompt medical treatment and take steps to avoid further damage such as modifying high-impact movements or using a brace to stabilize the joint. no. 4: eat right although no specific diet has been shown to prevent osteoarthritis certain nutrients have been associated with a reduced risk of the disease or its severity. they include: omega-3 fatty acids. these healthy fats reduce joint inflammation while unhealthy fats can increase it. good sources of omega-3 fatty acids include fish oil and certain plant/nut oils including walnut canola soybean flaxseed/linseed and olive. vitamin c. one study of participants in the framingham study found that moderate intake of vitamin c (120-200 milligrams per day) reduced the risk of osteoarthritis progression threefold. you can get more vitamin c in your diet by eating green peppers citrus fruits and juices strawberries tomatoes broccoli turnip greens and other leafy greens sweet and white potatoes and cantaloupe. vitamin d. another study of framingham study participants showed that people who have knee osteoarthritis and low blood levels of vitamin d are three times more likely to experience disease progression compared to people with high levels of the vitamin. your body makes most of the vitamin d it needs in response to sunlight. you can get more vitamin d in your diet by eating fatty fish such as salmon mackerel tuna sardines and herring; vitamin d-fortified milk and cereal; and eggs.
what can i do to prevent osteoarthritis or its progression?