How Chiropractic Care Can Prevent (or Manage) Arthritis

Osteoarthritis is defined as degeneration cartilage in the joints meant to provide cushioning for daily activities. While some wear and tear is expected with aging, too much of it can lead to pain, disability and poor quality of life. With an understanding of the disease process, prevention and management are completely feasible without the need for traditional invasive treatment options.

Osteoarthritis and its effect on quality of life.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is most common in the fifth decade of life and beyond. The joints affected most often include the knees and hips from weight bearing and the shoulders and fingers from repetitive use.

The body’s joints respond best to balanced regular use. Thus, overuse, imbalanced movements, or too little movement can all be a culprit for OA. Other risk factors include past injuries, metabolic diseases (Diabetes, obesity or heart disease), and being overweight.

The most common symptoms related to OA are stiffness and pain. As severity increases it can become difficult to complete normal daily activities. Traditional medical models diagnose the severity of OA based on imaging (such as an x-ray) that shows the level of cartilage damage. Yet, interestingly there is no direct correlation between how much pain and severity. Each individual deals with OA differently.

Treatment options for OA include physical therapy, weight loss, chiropractic care, massage therapy, injections, pain medications, and surgery. The best treatment is prevention first and then conservative care. Unfortunately, motivation tends to be low until there are symptoms. Additionally, many people may not be aware there is an issue with the way they are moving. This is why having an expert in joint alignment can help.

How chiropractic care can help.

The development of OA all begins due to an imbalance in the way the body moves. While some local issues can be at play related to muscle strength and flexibility, this balance ultimately comes down to spine alignment.

The core and the spine are the base for which all other movements of the human body are possible. Without the right signals from the brain and spinal cord for proper sequencing, chaos will catch up with the body eventually. When nerve energy is disrupted, muscles can’t coordinate, joints can feel stiff, and movement can become awkward and uncoordinated.

It’s like trying to ride your bike when the chain has come loose. Instead of fixing the issues, you keep pushing with significantly less efficiency and poor form even though you know that you’re damaging the spokes. Obviously, it’s better to hop off the bike and fix that chain before proceeding to prevent unnecessary damage.

Chiropractic BioPhysics (CBP) is an expert-backed approach that specializes in keeping this system as balanced as possible through spinal alignment. Oftentimes, untrained eyes are unaware of the alignment issues they have that may cause them future problems. That’s why a CBP practitioner can provide you a deep understanding of what your body needs to prevent arthritis and other potential health issues that occur with poor spine alignment.