Do you have painful joints when you get up in the morning? Do you feel stiff and sore and it takes awhile to get moving?
If so then you could be suffering from arthritis. There is more than one type of arthritis, but the most common one and the one I want to talk about today is osteoarthritis.
What exactly is osteoarthritis?
Our joints contain a firm, rubbery material called cartilage that covers the ends of bones. It is there to reduce friction when we move our joints. It also serves as a kind of shock absorber as it can change shape when pressed together.
When the cartilage in a joint to becomes stiff and loses its elasticity it becomes susceptible to damage. Over time the cartilage may wear away in some areas, which reduces its ability to act as a shock absorber. As the cartilage deteriorates, tendons and ligaments stretch and cause pain. As the damage gets worse the bones may rub against each other, causing even more problems in the joint. This is arthritis.
What Causes Arthritis in the First Place!
• Obesity: Having extra weight puts a strain on all the joints of the body, especially the ones that bear most of our weight like our knees, hips and spine.
• Over-use: Any joint that gets a lot of use such as using our fingers and thumbs, bending our knees and kneeling to do gardening or other chores.
• Injury: Like injuring a knee, or shoulder performing a sport, breaking a bone or any type of sprain like an ankle sprain, leave us open to developing arthritis in that joint.
• Heredity: People born with inherited weakness in their joints may be more susceptible to arthritis than others.
• Occupational Hazards: People whose jobs are physically demanding such as factory workers, construction workers or others like these, may be more prone to arthritis.
• Illness: Joint infections and gout also can leave people open to developing arthritis.
What can we do about it?
Studies have shown that acupuncture improves mobility and decreases pain in arthritis sufferers. The World Health Organization recognizes acupuncture as effective for arthritis of the shoulder. The Arthritis Foundation lists acupuncture as an alternative therapy for arthritis.
In my own experience treating patients with arthritis, it helps. In three recent cases of arthritis of the finger joints all three patients received weekly treatments. After only two treatments the pain disappeared. Of course this is an ideal scenario. Often it takes longer to find relief and many arthritis sufferers benefit from a maintenance schedule of treatments.
consider that acupuncture has no side effects as opposed to conventional treatments for arthritis.
Currently there is no cure for arthritis, but there is help.
If you would like to consider acupuncture for arthritis, call me at 310-367-1564 and we can discuss treatment options.