8 Ways to Keep Your Joints Healthy

As you age, it’s common to experience some joint pain. However, when joint pain moves from mild to debilitating, your daily life is negatively impacted. We’re sharing some tips on how to promote healthy joints as you age so that joint pain doesn’t affect your everyday life. 

8 Ways to Keep Your Joints Healthy

1. Keep moving. When you make an effort to exercise daily, you can maintain and improve your joint health. Many people who experience joint pain are worried that exercise will make their joint pain worse, so they avoid exercising. This only decreases the health of your joints and you’ll find that you experience more joint pain if you avoid exercising. Movement eases joint stiffness, joint pain, and strengthens the muscles surrounding the joints. Exercising also helps you to maintain and lose weight, which benefits your joints in the long run. 
2. Mindfully protecting your joints. There are a few ways to be mindful about protecting your joints. One of the ways is to listen to your body. If you’re experiencing joint pain from exercise, don’t just push through it. Most of the time, your body is trying to tell you something, so listen. Pay attention to proper body mechanics and balance activity and rest, don’t overdo it. 
3. Maintain an ideal weight. This one is important for your joint health. Carrying excess body weight adds unnecessary stress to our joints. According to a study done in 2005, for every one pound you lose, there is a four-fold reduction in loading forces on the knee when a step is taken.
4. Participate in low-impact exercise. Activities such as swimming and biking lessen the impact on your joints, which helps your joints to be healthier. 
5. Hit the gym a few times a week. When you participate in strength training exercises, you strengthen the muscles surrounding your joints. This can decrease your risk of joint injury and pain later on.
6. Incorporate some range of motion exercises in your daily workouts. These help to increase your mobility and flexibility, which in turn relieves stiffness and pain.
7. If you’re deficient in vitamin D and experience low levels of calcium, supplements could be beneficial for you. Your doctor can test you for low levels of both of these and recommend a supplement for you. Sufficient levels of vitamin D and calcium promote bone health, which will benefit your joints.
8. Quit smoking. Some people are unaware that smoking negatively impacts bone and joint health significantly.

When you follow these guidelines, you’re setting yourself up for healthy joints as you age. If you are experiencing joint pain, don’t hesitate to reach out to schedule your appointment with Dr. Nelson. By seeking medical care promptly when you experience joint pain, you’ll be able to recover more quickly as you follow your treatment plan. Dr. Nelson’s passion is providing quality healthcare to his patients. To schedule your appointment, give us a call at 435-774-8511.