8 Signs Of Arthritis

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Arthritis occurs when your joints become inflamed, causing stiffness, fatigue, swelling and pain. Exercises, weight loss and supplementation  can help relieve the symptoms.

The Arthritis Foundation reports that Arthritis is one of the leading reasons for disability in American adults. Approximately 54 million American adults have been diagnosed with Arthritis, and around 300,000 children have Arthritis. There are over 100 types of Arthritis, including degenerative Arthritis, inflammatory Arthritis, metabolic Arthritis, and infectious Arthritis. Each of these types of Arthritis has similar signs and symptoms. Let's look at the eight common signs of Arthritis and how to relieve your symptoms.

• Joint stiffness—People living with Arthritis often experience joint stiffness, which occurs when the lining of their joints becomes inflamed. Stiffness typically occurs after a period of inactivity. After waking, people with Arthritis often experience joint stiffness for 30 minutes to an hour. Doing range-of-motion exercises, applying heat to stiff joints, and taking a glucosamine supplement help decrease the stiffness associated with Arthritis. 

• Joint pain – Arthritis often causes the lining of the joints to thicken and excess fluid to build up in the joints, resulting in joint pain. Many people assume that joint pain is a natural part of aging; however, this is not true! Pain can interfere with your day-to-day life. Luckily, there are many things that you can do to relieve your joint pain, including regular exercise, supplementation, medications, and joint replacement therapy.

• Joint swelling – Excess weight can increase your risk of developing Arthritis because it places additional weight on your joints and is linked to systemic inflammation. For example, when walking, the force exerted on your knees is approximately one and a half times your body weight. This means if you weigh 200 pounds, the pressure on your knees is 300 pounds. This increases to two to three times your body weight on inclines. To help relieve your joint swelling, get active, eat a healthy diet, and achieve a healthy body weight.

• Fever—Many people with arthritis experience fever, joint pain, swelling, and stiffness. A low-grade fever occurs when the joints in the body become inflamed. When inflammation occurs, the immune system goes into overdrive and releases cytokines. These cytokines raise the body's core temperature, producing a low-grade fever. You can counteract the effects of a fever by applying a cool compress to your forehead, ensuring that you are adequately hydrated, and taking an anti-inflammatory medication.

• Numbness and tingling—When inflammation occurs in the body, it can press on the nerves, resulting in numbness, burning, or tingling. Another name for these symptoms is neuropathy. When the nerves become compressed due to inflammation, they cannot correctly send information to the spinal cord and brain. Several symptoms can occur when these signals become distorted, including numbness, tingling, muscle weakness, burning, prickling, and sensitivity to the touch.

• Decreased range of motion – Joint inflammation can cause the ligaments and tendons in the body to become deformed or unstable. When the tendons and ligaments become unstable or misshapen, you may be unable to straighten or bend your joints normally. Gentle exercise, along with weight loss, can help to improve your range of motion.

• Fatigue—One of the common symptoms of Arthritis is fatigue, typically caused by poor sleep, medications, and the body's reaction to the inflammation associated with Arthritis. When you have low energy levels, you may experience mood swings and depression, your relationships and career may suffer, your libido may be low, and your creativity and joy may wane.

• Depression – When you have Arthritis, the pain, decreased range of motion, inflammation, and neuropathy can prevent you from doing the things that you once did. This can cause depression to set in, especially if you were active before you began suffering from Arthritis. You can counteract the effects of Arthritis on your mood by staying as active as possible, spending time with family and friends, and learning a new hobby.

Arthritis occurs when your joints become inflamed, causing stiffness, fatigue, decreased range of motion, swelling,g, and pain. The cartilage and lining of your joints begin to wear and break down, destroying them. Luckily, gentle exercises, weight loss, and supplementation with glucosamine can help relieve the many symptoms of Arthritis.

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