Joints are the areas where two bones connect or meet, allowing us to move freely. As we age, joints may begin to degenerate. Nowadays, joint problems are no longer exclusive to the elderly but are becoming more prevalent among younger people. Sometimes, work requirements or habits can significantly impact joint health. For example, people who do manual labor and perform repetitive movements may experience joint problems. Therefore, early joint care is essential.
Joint Health Test
- Neck joints: Rotate your head clockwise and counterclockwise 10 times each.
Head rotation uses the neck joints. If the rotation is not smooth, pay attention.
- Shoulder joints: Raise both arms straight up 10 times.
Raising your arms straight up uses the shoulder joints. If the joints are damaged, you may not be able to raise your arms. Office workers who use computers for extended periods should pay particular attention.
- Hip joints: Walk backward 3 meters.
Walking backward can assess the coordination of muscles, bones, and joints.
- Knee joints: Stand up and squat down 10 consecutive times.
Standing up and squatting down primarily tests knee joint flexibility. If you cannot squat continuously, you should pay attention to your knee joints.
- Ankle joints: Jump continuously 5 or more times.
Continuous jumping tests the integrated performance of the hip, knee, and ankle joints. If you cannot jump, it indicates a problem with the coordination of these three.
Main Reasons Affecting Joint Health
- Aging leads to joint degeneration, and the synthesis of glucosamine in the body slows down and decreases, causing it to fail to keep up with the rate of decomposition, thereby affecting the metabolism of cells within the joints.
- Long-term heavy labor such as lifting heavy objects. This puts extra stress on the joints, making them more prone to injury.
- Repetitive movements. Long-term repetitive work can gradually wear away cartilage, causing friction between bones. Synovial fluid is continuously lost, and when the body cannot produce enough synovial fluid to replenish it, it can no longer effectively protect the cartilage.
- Prolonged sitting or standing. Staying in one position for too long causes the same set of muscles and joints to bear the load, which can lead to overuse of specific muscles and impaired metabolism in joints due to lack of compression.
- Poor sitting and standing posture. Common poor postures such as cross-legged sitting and leg-crossing can affect the joints.
- Over-exercising. This can easily lead to damage to joint cartilage.
- Lack of exercise. The health of muscles and ligaments is also closely related to joints. If you do not maintain an exercise habit, leading to muscle atrophy, the joints will be burdened without muscle support.
Causes of Joint Problems
Age, lifestyle, and work habits are all factors that affect joint health. Excessive cartilage wear or abnormal synovial fluid secretion can affect joint movement, leading to symptoms such as pain, swelling, heat, and stiffness in the joints.
Relief Methods
- The Department of Health recommends that citizens can improve degenerative knee osteoarthritis through aquatic exercise: swimming places little pressure on the joints and can enhance lower limb muscle strength and establish good movement patterns, reducing knee joint wear.
- Maintaining joint activity helps the muscles and soft tissues around the joints remain flexible and elastic, and promotes the production of synovial fluid.
- Strengthen muscles. Strong muscles have better shock absorption capabilities and can provide stable support and protection for the joints.
- Stretching exercises. Local and whole-body stretching exercises help improve muscle flexibility and expand the range of motion of the joints.
- Using tools such as joint compression bands or knee sleeves can distribute pressure and reduce direct impact on the joints.
- Maintaining good posture helps distribute the weight borne by the joints evenly, reducing the burden on the joints.
Nutrients Beneficial for Joints
Products containing glucosamine and chondroitin are beneficial for bone and joint health. Glucosamine exists in the body; it is a healthy cartilage connective tissue. Chondroitin, also found in important joint areas such as chondrocytes and proteoglycans, attracts water and nutrients. Chondroitin and glucosamine can help human cartilage tissue.
Reference
https://hk.news.yahoo.com/%E9%97%9C%E7%AF%80%E5%81%A5%E5%BA%B7-%E6%89%93%E5%B7%A5%E4%BB%94%E7%9A%84%E9%97%9C%E7%AF%80%E4%BF%9D%E5%81%A5bible-%E9%81%8B%E5%8B%95%E6%B2%BB%E7%99%82%E5%B8%AB%E6%95%99%E4%BD%A05%E5%A4%A7%E9%97%9C%E7%AF%80%E4%BF%9D%E9%A4%8A%E6%8B%9B%E5%BC%8F-100000506.html
https://bonebro.com/two-steps-to-examine-your-joint-health/
https://www.dh.gov.hk/tc_chi/press/2010/100709.html