If you’re suffering from pain or stiffness in your knees and hips and you’re over 65, you’re not alone. According to Consumer Reports, three in four people over 65 have joint pain. Fortunately, there are many ways to ease this pain.
Osteoarthritis is the common cause of joint pain in older age. People lose the cartilage that cushions their bones, leading their bones to rub together. The pain is often most pronounced first thing in the morning and when rising from a seated position.
Many people take ibuprofen–Advil, Motrin or some other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug–to ease their pain. Or, they take acetaminophen. These drugs can all help relieve pain, but you should avoid taking them all the time. They come with some risks.
Similarly, you can take steroid injections or hyaluronic acid injections for mild or moderate pain, but you don’t want to take more than a couple of them. (N.B. Some people do platelet-rich plasma treatment, but there’s not a lot of evidence that it is effective.)
You can also sometimes ease pain through a variety of different physical activity. People who move around produce synovial fluid, which helps cushion the bones. The problem with physical activity is that it can hurt, so people resist it.
One way to go if walking hurts is to do a work-out at the pool or to use a stationary bike that allows you to lean back. Leaning back while biking relieves pressure on your knees. Tai chi is yet another way to go to get your synovial fluid flowing.
For people with serious pain, physical therapy can help increase flexibility and strengthen joint muscles. Strengthening these muscles tends to ease pain. Medicare often covers physical therapy. You can also try changing your diet to eat more plant-based foods.
There’s some evidence that eating more beans, nuts, fruits and vegetables can reduce pain from osteoarthritis because it reduces inflammation. Salmon and other fatty fish can also help, as can foods with vitamin K, such as kale and spinach.
If you’re overweight, you might be able to ease joint pain by losing five or ten pounds. Each pound you lose lowers pressure on your knees and hips by five to six pounds.
You should also try to get a good night’s sleep and ease any stress. If you’re not sleeping enough, you are more likely to feel your joint pain. When you’re stressed out, you produce more inflammation-causing hormones that adds to your pain. Try to take deep breaths for a few minutes to relieve tension.
If diet, exercise, physical therapy and over-the-counter medicines are not able to ease your pain, you should talk to your doctor about the value of a hip or knee replacement. An orthopedic surgeon can help you understand the benefits and risks. These are quite common effective procedures–even for people in their 80’s–that can last a long time. But, they involve surgery, from which it could take you a while to recover.
Consumer Report warns that if you do decide to have a hip or knee replacement, you are best off using a surgeon who has done hundreds of these procedures and going to a hospital that does thousands of these procedures each year.
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