Healthy Knees: A Simple Exercise Can Reduce Pain
Reduce pain and delay joint damage, if you want healthy knees, discover the exercise that can help you in this process
Did you know there's a simple exercise that can help you get healthy knees? It is not uncommon to find people with osteoarthritis of the knee, or osteoarthritis, a degenerative and inflammatory disease that causes the destruction of joint cartilage and leads to joint deformity. But with the diagnosis, the question arises: what types of physical activity can you do? Walking , for example, is a great option!
According to Dr. Marcos Cortelazo, orthopedic specialist in knee and sports traumatology, member of the Brazilian Society of Orthopedics and Traumatology (SBOT), it is known that this type of exercise can be an effective treatment to delay the damage that occurs in the joint, in addition to reducing pain .
The doctor also cites a study published in the middle of last year in Arthritis & Rheumatology, called "Association between walking for exercise and symptomatic and structural progression in individuals with knee osteoarthritis: data from the Osteoarthritis Initiative cohort", which showed the benefits of this activity.
According to the doctor, the diagnosis of osteoarthritis in the knees is common after the age of 50. Researchers in this study, of 1212 participants in this age group diagnosed with knee osteoarthritis, examined the results of the Osteoarthritis Initiative, a multi-year observational study in which participants self-reported the amount of time and frequency they walked to get up. to exercise.
Those who reported walking as exercise had a 40% reduction in the odds of frequent new knee pain compared to non-walkers. "These findings are useful for people who have radiographic evidence of osteoarthritis but do not experience daily knee pain. This study supports the possibility that walking as exercise may help prevent the onset of daily knee pain. It may also delay the worsening of knee pain." damage within the joint caused by osteoarthritis," says Dr. Mark Cortelazo.
According to the doctor, in osteoarthritis, the ideal is to do aerobic activities without impact on the joint. Walking has health benefits such as improved cardiovascular health and a reduced risk of obesity, diabetes and some cancers. “Walking is a physical exercise with minimal side effects, unlike medications, which often come with a high price and the possibility of side effects, but which should be used if there is a medical recommendation”, says the specialist. Walking is important for those who still don't feel pain and also for those who already suffer from daily pain, especially if you have the type of arthritis in which your knees are arched", says Dr. Marcos.
Walking is not the only modality that offers benefits. Activities such as physiotherapy, hydrogymnastics, swimming, bodybuilding, pilates and cycling, all with low load, offer protection to the knee joints and stimulate the increase in muscle mass in the thigh, which has very important muscles for the knees. “In addition to exercises, important measures such as body weight control and the use of medication are essential to reduce pain and the progression of the disease”, he concludes.
