More than a million hip and knees are replaced every year in the U.S. Hip and knee surgery has become almost common place. But despite its seeming popularity, most would rather avoid having to be placed under anesthesia and the surgeon’s knife. If you count yourself in this category, read on.
Why do people undergo surgery to replace joints in their knees and hips? Usually, because they are in pain from arthritis or their joints have been severely damaged. Having a joint that hurts with every step can make it difficult to walk, climb stairs, get groceries at the grocery store, participate in activities, and even sleep. Sometimes, people experience pain in their joints without even putting any weight on them at all.Also Read ==> Pain Behind Knee – Causes and Natural Treatments
With intense discomfort like this, why not go ahead with joint replacement surgery? Obviously, someone’s quality of life can be significantly affected by painful joints that refuse to function properly. But the truth about joint surgery is that many of the problems that put a person into the situation of needing surgery are not addressed by having a knee replacement to rely on.
These problems include being overweight. It’s no secret that carrying extra weight around all the time can lead to increased pressure and friction in the knee and hip joints. Replacing a knee or hip joint without making a commitment to shed excess pounds could result in the same old problems cropping up again. So before you head out to surgery, try this natural joint pain relief strategy: losing weight. Before undergoing joint replacement therapy, it’s important to get your weight down to a normal range. You might just find in the process that the joints you have can do the job you ask of them, without nearly as much pain.
Closely linked to this joint pain relief strategy for avoiding knee replacement surgery is paying attention to what you wear on your feet. You need to invest in the best shoes you can get for your particular circumstances. Forget about fashion and go for comfort, support, and stability.
Along with losing a little weight, increasing your flexibility may help to get a lot more pain-free miles out of your hips and knees. It’s time to start doing some stretches—that’s another easy way to get natural joint pain relief. You can follow a traditional stretch program or you can join a yoga class at your local studio. Tai chi is another form of exercise that helps build flexibility in different muscle groups. By improving your flexibility, your knee and hip joints no longer have full responsibility for keeping you balanced and on your feet. Flexible muscles can help out with every step taken.
The same principle applies to the next natural joint pain relief strategy for avoiding joint replacement surgery: strength training. Strength training builds muscle in places where you may not have much built up. This is because we all tend to spend a lifetime moving in the same way with the same two or three muscles engaged and working extra hard. Spend just 20 minutes in the gym working out and you’ll be surprised by the number of muscles that you never knew you had when they all hurt the next day! This is good news, however. Persevere, and soon you will notice that even basic skills such as walking will become easier. By using weight machines, you can target all your muscles and get them working synergistically with your joints, easing their workload.
There are some easy ways you can get natural joint pain relief. While addressing your weight and gaining strength and flexibility, consider supplementing with a joint and bone formula. Even though evidence for the effectiveness of chondroitin and glucosamine remains mixed, these two could still play a role in keeping your joints healthy. Chondroitin helps prevent the breakdown of cartilage while glucosamine boosts cartilage formation and helps to repair damaged cartilage.
Which of these natural joint pain strategies have you tried? And are they helpful in avoiding joint replacement surgery or hip replacement surgery?
Source(s) for Today’s Article:
“Avoiding knee or hip surgery,” Harvard Health Publications web site, June 2013; www.health.harvard.edu, last accessed July 10, 2013.
“Knee Pain,” MedlinePlus web site; www.mln.nih.gov, last accessed July 10, 2013.
Teichtahl, A.J., et al., “The longitudinal relationship between changes in body weight and changes in medial tibial cartilage, and pain among community-based adults with and without meniscal tears,” Ann Rheum Dis. June 6, 2013.