Here's a question to get you thinking a bit:
Who would be most likely to develop knee/hip arthritis, a sedentary person or marathon runner?
I often get told by clients the following things or along the lines of...
"I think I have arthritis on "x" body part.."
"My doctor/chiro says I have arthritis on "x" body part.."
"I've gotten arthritis due to my old age.."
"I've got arthritis from too much of "x" activity.."
There seems to be a misconception of WHY we can tend to have arthritis. A lot of people tend to think it's from wear and tear on our body over time. There can be some truth to that, but that's not entirely it.
Well lets just say its a bit complicated and still not fully
understood but here is a simplistic way I tend explain
arthritis.
lt's not perfect, nor a 100% absolute explanation but just bear with me
So our joints cartilage is both a-neural and a-vascular meaning
it doesn't have a nutrition or waste removal service.
Instead it relies on the movement of water in an out of it to
feed it and keep it clean! - Which is why CARs (Controlled Articular Rotations) can help improve hydration of our joints cartilage.
Water is constantly being drawn into cartilage by high
amounts of molecules called proteoglycans within it, and
water is then squeezed out by the forces it experiences during
movement and loading! (Tension/Irradiation) sound familiar ?
When there is a break down in this transportation of water in
and out of cartilage things tend to go down hill. (Sedentary lifestyle or poor quality movement)
This is more often than not due to not ENOUGH water being
squeezed out of cartilage meaning waste products are not
removed and the cartilages environment becomes toxic.
This then begins a chemical cascade and the inflammation and
cartilage degeneration begins.
One of the most common misunderstandings about early
arthritis is its often caused by increased levels of water in the
cartilage.
Joint cartilage needs tons of force everyday to squeeze
water out of it and remove waste products. (CARs/physical activity)
However the good NEWS is early OA is often reversible, yes
reversible by INCREASING joint loading to force more water
and waste products out of and improve cartilages cellular
environment.
This is why exercise and joint loading is so IMPORTANT and
ESSENTIAL for arthritis!
Often is not too much but too little loading that is the culprit!
Now back to our earlier question. In a study by Ponzio et al, 2018, they saw that most marathon runners were LESS likely to develop knee/hip arthritis than your typical modern person.
MAIN POINTS:
1. Wear n tear is not a direct culprit of arthritis
2. Hydration is crucial for our joint health (good quality movement & drinking plenty of water)
3. FORCE is what helps bring nutrients into our joints and toxic waste out
