Taking Care Of Your Joints

Our joints work extremely hard over a lifetime so it is not surprising that repeated strenuous activity involved in certain jobs and sports, and the ageing process, may affect their health and efficiency.

Generic predisposition can also impact on joint health. Few people over the age of 50 have failed to notice some stiffening of their joints, particularly when they get up in the morning or after a period of prolonged inactivity.

As we are all living longer, it makes good sense to take care of our joints to keep them supple and flexible at work and at play:

• Maintain a healthy weight. Carrying too much weight increases the strain on loadbearing joints
• Exercise. Many people think that exercise might damage their joints. Although intensive sports participation may not always be beneficial to joints, moderate exercise promotes movement, strength, sustained function as well as aiding all-round physical and psychological well-being
• Eat a balanced diet. Some people claim that certain foods are either good or bad for their joints. There is no hard evidence to support any particular foods or any particular diet regime for joint health apart from eating foods high in the omega-3 fatty acids, like oily fish. A healthy diet includes plenty of fruit, vegetables and grains and only moderate amounts of fatty and sugary foods
• Consider taking a supplement to safeguard the diet. Evidence links joint health with three naturally-occurring ingredients, glucosamine, chondroitin and the long-chain omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA (eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid) found in cod liver oil and fish oil