Educating Yourself About Osteoarthritis

Fall is here and the cooler weather typically means that people start feeling more aches and pains from arthritis.  Without the summer heat, our joints become stiff and tight causing arthritis to become more pronounced. Osteoarthritis is the wear and tear that happens in our bodies as we age. It is also one of the most common causes of pain in our aging population.

However, as the population continues to age, the issue of relieving pain becomes an important topic to address.  At least 50% of the people greater than 65 will experience osteoarthritis in their hips, knees and hands.  The result of osteoarthritis is often pain.  Pain is an extremely complex issue that is multifactorial consisting of biomechanical, metabolic and neurological components.

Research has proven time and time again that one of the best ways to manage the pain associated with arthritic change is through education.  Thus it is important to understand what occurs when you have osteoarthritis and/or tissue changes in your body.

Remember, as mentioned above, pain is multifactorial. As a result, there are many people who have osteoarthritis and/or other degenerative changes in their body, and do NOT have any pain.

Osteoarthritis causes the following:

1. Tissue damage.
2. Inflammation.
3. Release of proteins and hormones to the area.
4. Cell death.
5. Cell growth.
6. Nerve changes that become easily activated at the spinal level.
7. Increased signals to the brain.
8. Brain changes and becomes more aware from those increased signals.
9. Area in the brain responsible for mood and movement are affected.
10. Output from the brain is altered to affect your mood and movement.

As you can see, there are several factors that can cause pain to occur. Thus, it is critical that when you receive treatment it includes: (1) body readjustment towards the spinal segments to help reset the signals from the nerves, (2) specific localized treatment to help with the inflammation and tissue changes, and (3) education and movement retraining to rewire your brain.

Education about your body is powerful, and osteoarthritis is not an excuse to be inactive. Remember to keep moving, as motion is lotion for your body!!!