Читать книгу Arthritis For Dummies - Barry Fox - Страница 46

Although osteoarthritis affects more than 30 million Americans, not everybody suffers from it. Some people actually sail into their golden years with joints unaffected by pain, stiffness, or other symptoms, while others are hobbling around by the time they’re 35. So how come one person gets osteoarthritis while another gets away scot-free? And how can you tell if you happen to be particularly susceptible to it?

Your chances of developing osteoarthritis are increased if:

 You’re past age 45: Cartilage and other joint structures, like most bodily tissues, tend to degrade and become weaker over time. After decades of use, they start to wear out. Luckily, research has shown that osteoarthritis isn’t inevitable as we age. The odds just go up.

 You’ve had a joint injury: If you’ve been in a car accident, have played rough-and-tumble sports, or have injured any of your joints in any way, you are more likely to develop osteoarthritis in the joints that were affected by those activities.

 Your joints have been repeatedly stressed: Ballet dancers, assembly line workers, baseball pitchers, grocery checkers, and anyone else who overuses and stresses a joint or joints can suffer from cartilage breakdown in those joints.

 You’re a woman: Women are three times more likely than men to develop osteoarthritis. This may be due to smaller joint structures or some link to estrogen; nothing has yet been proven.

 Your parents had it: There appears to be a genetic component to osteoarthritis; in fact, one study concluded that genes were responsible for 50 percent of hip osteoarthritis cases. Osteoarthritis in the hands is also believed to be at least partially due to genetics. An inherited tendency toward defective cartilage or poorly structured joints can certainly put you on the road to osteoarthritis, although you won’t necessarily develop it.

 You’re overweight: Excess weight puts a great deal of strain on the weight-bearing joints — the hips, knees, and ankles. For every ten pounds of excess weight you carry, you increase the force exerted on these joints anywhere from four to ten times, depending upon the type of activity. Researchers have found a definite link between being overweight and osteoarthritis, especially involving the knee joints.

Using chopsticks can actually increase your risk of developing OA of the hand! Researchers studying 2,507 60-year-old residents of Beijing, China found significantly more OA in the first, second, and third fingers of the hand that used chopsticks than the non-chopstick-using hand. Repeated mechanical stress to these joints, via chopstick use, is believed to be the culprit.