Sore joints are debilitating and will have your entire body aching in pain. When cartilage in your joints starts to fade, bone rubs against bones, which causes osteoarthritis. This painful degeneration causes pain and stiffness, especially in trouble areas such as the knees, hips, elbows and fingers. If you’re ready to take control of your arthritis and sore joints try these natural remedies to ease the pain.
Manage Your Weight
This may sound strange, but a rule of thumb that doctors often tell osteoarthritis patients is that for every pound you put on means an extra four pounds of weight on your poor joints. “So if you think about all the steps you take in a day, you can see why it would lead to premature damage in weight-bearing joints,” says Dr. Eric Matteson, MD, chair of the rheumatology division at the Rochester, MN Mayo Clinic.
And it isn’t just the extra weight, fat itself will attack and hurt your joints. Fat coagulates around joints, releasing potentially joint-harming chemicals that cause inflammation. While losing weight — especially a large amount — may not be the easiest task because of joint stress and inflammatory chemicals, it may be a necessity if you want to get rid of joint soreness once and for all.
Acupuncture
Using acupuncture to treat arthritis has been around for about 2,000 years. Whether you have rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, or fibromyalgia, acupuncture has been shown to reduce negative symptoms of these diseases. According to the Arthritis Foundation, “The ancient – and current – theory of acupuncture goes like this: An essential life energy called qi (pronounced “chee”) flows through the body along 20 invisible channels called meridians. When the flow of this energy is blocked or out of balance, illness or pain occurs. More than 2,000 acupuncture points connect to the meridians. Stimulating those points with needles may correct the flow and alleviate pain.” The most useful acupuncture relief applications is how it increases the natural painkillers your body makes, called endorphins.
While acupuncture should replace your other medical care, it may be a useful supplemental treatment in your quest for healthier bone joints.
Chiropractic & Physical Therapy
If you have arthritis or other debilitating joint problems, seeing a chiropractor might help with the condition. While it won’t relieve osteoarthritis, it will be useful in calming the muscle spasms that often tag along when joint pain is prevalent. A chiropractor can help with the underlying causes of joint pain so that your body will repair non-functioning bones and muscles to allow for a fuller range of motion.
Different from a chiropractic session, a physical therapist can examine, diagnose and treat conditions related directly to the ability to move about in your daily life. They can develop custom exercises that will improve your mobility, strength, flexibility, coordination, balance and endurance. They also may make suggestions on how to improve your environment to become more joint-friendly, such as upgrading to an ergonomic desk chair or computer keyboard.
Supplements for Joint Function
Supplements have seen a huge surge in the health industry, because they work. Specifically, Elk Velvet Antler has been shown to effectively improve joint function and stability. Recently, the ability for two Wapiti supplements, Velvetan and Velvegin to support and restore joint structure and function (as a result of osteoarthritis) was substantiated by scientific evidence in compliance with FDA regulations. This means that validated scientific studies from around the world prove that velvet antler is a significant anti-inflammatory agent for the symptoms of osteoarthritis and possibly other types of acute chronic inflammation as well.
