Osteoarthritis Symptoms – An Overview

Osteoarthritis is easily the most prevalent form of arthritis in the United States today. Currently, almost 40 million Americans suffer from this ailment, and it is estimated that number will increase to about 70 million by 2030.

Simply speaking, osteoarthritis can be defined as "the structural or functional of your joints". It's not just the joint that experiences failure but the surrounding muscles, ligaments, the underlying bone, joint lining and the joint cover.

While some people suffer from this degenerative disease at an early age due to the suffering an injury, the largest group of people that it affects are seniors, in particular, above the age of 65.

And interestingly, people who struggle with obesity stand a greater chance in suffering from osteoarthritis during their "senior" years.

Preventing Osteoarthritis

One way of looking at this problem requires you to recognize and accept aging yet it has been found that those who tend to exercise in their 20s and 30s, are less likelier to experience this less-than-desirable ailment in their old age.

In fact, since obesity is related to this disease, working out isn't such a bad idea, right?

Blame it on the inability to stay active or keep moving… probably, your office environment doesn't help much nor does your lifestyle as soon as you get back from work.

But for those who do make exercise a priority, old age will, in all probability not have to deal with the terrible joint pains, stiffness, locking and tenderness of joints that finally lead to the loss of cartilage as the disease progresses further.

And since we're talking about the joints being affected here, not only will the joints present in the knees be affected but also in the hands, feet, spine and hips.

So what are common symptoms related to each of the joints in these body parts?

Osteoarthritis Symptoms

Firstly, the common osteoarthritis symptoms for all of these body parts is that there will be pain when you want to "move" that particular body part.

While for some, most of these joints will be affected, there are particular symptoms for specific body parts as well. So here they are:

#1: Fingers

Bone enlargements in the fingertips occur, and they can be painful or not, depending on the situation. Women above the age of 45 generally suffer from this kind of osteoarthritis.

#2: Hips

Osteoarthritis of the hips primarily involves pain and discomfort while moving and one of the most common reasons as to why this occurs is due to a heavy workload when the patient was younger.

#3: Knees

It's no different for the joints in the knees as pain and discomfort can be experienced when suffering from this kind of osteoarthritis. If you tend to kneel or squat too often, then the chances of you suffering from this ailment increases substantially.

#4: Spine

When the ailment spreads to the spine, the first thing that happens is that bone spurs which can pinch or crowd the nerves in our body, thus causing pain and weakness in our arms and legs.

In Closing

You might have had an excellent 20 years, thanks to your parent's genes but the secret to an excellent old age depends on whether you keep your body fit or not. And as recently discovered, it can be prevented by consuming foods that contain the omega-3 fatty acids.

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