How to prevent and treat arthritis when the weather turns cooler
2024-10-15
The cold dew has passed, and as the weather cools down, many people's joints begin to feel obvious pain, stiffness, and limited mobility. If these symptoms appear, it may be due to arthritis. Arthritis refers to inflammatory diseases that occur in the joints and surrounding tissues of the human body, including various types such as osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gouty arthritis, etc. Osteoarthritis is mainly caused by the continuous degeneration of articular cartilage, and is one of the most common chronic diseases. High incidence populations include the elderly, obese individuals, and those who do heavy work for a long time. Hormones in women's bodies change with age, and the risk of developing arthritis is also higher. In recent years, the incidence rate of office white-collar workers is also increasing. According to data released by the National Health Commission, it is conservatively estimated that there are over 100 million patients with osteoarthritis in China. Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by synovitis and vascular opacities, which cause damage to joint cartilage and bone, ultimately leading to joint deformities and loss of function, resulting in a high disability rate. It can occur at any age, mostly in the age group of 35-50 years old, and is more common in females. At present, the cause is unclear, and some people believe it is related to cold and humid weather, but in fact, there is no obvious connection between the two. Currently, this disease cannot be cured. Gouty arthritis is an inflammatory reaction caused by disorders in purine metabolism and/or reduced uric acid excretion in the human body, resulting in high levels of uric acid in the blood. This leads to the precipitation of monosodium urate crystals from blood vessels, which then deposit in the joints and surrounding soft tissues. The incidence rate among young males (18-29 years old) is as high as 32.3%. During acute attacks of gout, redness, swelling, heat, and pain can be seen, accompanied by restricted mobility, which is closely related to hyperuricemia. It is worth noting that in addition to joint pain caused by different types of arthritis, rheumatic and immune diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus and Sjogren's syndrome can also cause joint pain. Local infections of some joints, paraneoplastic syndromes, and genetic metabolic diseases may also manifest in the joints. Therefore, after experiencing discomfort, it is necessary to seek medical attention and check in a timely manner. There are many early signs and symptoms of arthritis, such as persistent knee pain after mild to moderate exercise, knee pain when going up and down stairs, squatting up and down, audible clicking during joint movement, and increased likelihood of these symptoms occurring when the weather cools down. Joint pain and tenderness are the most prominent symptoms of osteoarthritis, with hip, knee, and finger joints being the most common. Patients may experience mild or moderate intermittent dull pain in the early stages of the disease, which improves after rest and worsens after activity. Severe osteoarthritis can cause persistent pain or nighttime pain. The typical symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis include chronic joint pain, stiffness, tenderness, fever, and swelling, especially affecting the joints of the hands, wrists, feet, ankles, knees, shoulders, and elbows. In addition, patients may experience fatigue, general discomfort, and even depressive symptoms. The typical symptoms of acute gouty arthritis are sudden joint redness, swelling, heat, and pain. The pain progressively intensifies and presents as tearing, knife cutting, or biting, which is unbearable and can usually resolve on its own within a few days. If the blood uric acid level rises for a long time and gouty arthritis persists, it can progress to chronic gouty arthritis. How to prevent and treat arthritis? Firstly, overweight (body mass index or BMI of 25-29.9) or obesity (BMI ≥ 30) are the main risk factors for arthritis. If the body is in a state of overweight or obesity for a long time, excessive joint load can accelerate degenerative changes such as cartilage wear, ligament aging, and bone loss. Therefore, patients with osteoarthritis should reduce their weight by controlling their diet, exercising appropriately, and taking into account their own situation. For patients who have difficulty losing weight, tools such as canes and walkers can be used to assist walking and reduce joint load. A study has found that for every 1 kilogram of weight loss, the knee joint load will decrease by 4 kilograms. Secondly, strong muscles are not only beneficial for reducing joint weight-bearing pressure, but also for maintaining normal joint mobility and increasing joint stability. Therefore, patients with arthritis should protect their knee joint through reasonable muscle exercise, especially by exercising the muscles around the knee joint. However, it should be noted that muscle exercise should be carried out in a non load bearing or low load bearing state as much as possible, such as cycling, swimming, walking, etc. It is not recommended to engage in mountain climbing, running, and other sports. At the same time, the amount and duration of each exercise should be determined according to individual physical conditions. Do not increase the amount of exercise or prolong the exercise time due to excessive speed, as this may worsen knee joint injuries. Again, humid and cold environments are important triggers for accelerating joint disease, and knee joint pain is more likely to occur frequently when temperatures drop in autumn and winter. Therefore, strengthening joint warmth is something that every patient should do. There are many methods to enhance joint warmth, first of all, it is necessary to add clothing in a timely manner according to temperature changes; Secondly, wearing waist and knee guards is a simple and effective method that not only provides warmth, but also stabilizes joints, strengthens ligaments, protects muscles from strains during exercise. Fourthly, for patients who have already experienced joint swelling and pain, some simple and easy self therapies at home can help improve joint discomfort symptoms, such as soaking, hot compress, fumigation, moxibustion, etc. Sichuan peppercorns, dried ginger, and fennel can be boiled with water. When the temperature drops to an acceptable level for the skin, they can be poured into a bucket to soak and wash the affected joints. Wrap the area with a towel to reduce the spread of hot steam. You can also wrap the above-mentioned medication in a towel or gauze and tie one end tightly to make a hot compress pack. Place it in a pot and steam it over water. After the hot compress pack is moist and the medicinal smell dissipates, take it out and let it sit for a while. After the temperature drops, the affected joint can be hot compressed. To prevent skin burns during the above self therapy, the temperature should not be too high. If the above self therapy cannot effectively improve symptoms, it is still advisable to seek medical attention as soon as possible. Finally, in order to maintain joint health, it is necessary to provide sufficient nutrition for them. Existing research has found that dietary factors are involved in the onset of arthritis, and unhealthy dietary habits can promote disease progression and exacerbate joint pain symptoms. For patients with arthritis, their daily diet should consume more foods rich in fiber, high-quality protein, polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, calcium and other substances, such as various vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts, poultry, fish, etc., and eat less red meat such as lamb and pork. In terms of cooking methods, it should be as simple as possible to avoid the loss of trace elements and antioxidant components. When cooking, flaxseed oil, olive oil, corn oil, etc. should be used instead of animal oil and various artificial butter. (New Society)
Edit：Chen Jie Responsible editor：Li Ling
Source：Workers' Daily
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