Exercise Is A Must For A Healthy Heart And Healthy Knees
August 12, 2008
Of all the joints in the body, knees cause the most aggravation for people over fifty. During one’s lifetime, weight-bearing knee joints see plenty of wear and tear and are often the first to show signs of osteoarthritis.
For long, Rheumatologists have debated whether rest is the best treatment for arthritic knees, or does physical activity contribute to the problem. However, a new study suggests any exercise that is good for the heart is also good for knees. While, research proves that physical activity may actually protect the knee joint from osteoarthritis.
The study used a total of 257-healthy adults aged between 50 and 70-year, with no history of osteoarthritis or knee injury as part of their survey. Using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) researchers detected cartilage loss and early signs of osteoarthritis, but as Rheumatologists are aware, loss of knee cartilage has been linked to worsening knee symptoms in sufferers of osteoarthritis.
They put trial subjects through physical exercise that varied in intensity, frequency and duration, analysing the results over a four year period. It was found that vigorous physical activity i.e. exercise that gets the heart pumping and the body sweating, was associated with an increase in cartilage volume. The more the subjects exercised, the more cartilage volume was recorded. Weight-bearing exercise was also found to be highly beneficial.
Another notable finding links moderate physical activity, including regular walking, with a reduced incidence of marrow lesions, demonstrating a potentially beneficial effect of walking.
The amount of physical exercise is key to preventing, rather than causing, osteoarthritis. Knee injuries are a well-known precursor to osteoarthritis, as illustrated in many professional athletes and sports people. Too much vigorous exercise can also be detrimental to the physical health of the knee joint, but too little also has the same effect. However, the amount of physical activity that is ideal remains largely unclear. At least 20-minutes once a week of physical activity is sufficient to result in sweating or shortness of breath and might be adequate.
What is known is that regular physical activity throughout people’s lives provides protection for the knee joint in later years. The study also suggests that older people benefit enormously from regular physical activity, so instead of putting those old knees up to rest, the message is to get them mobile.
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