Osteoarthritis

The most common type of arthritis is osteoarthritis. It is estimated that around 8.75 million people in the UK have seen a doctor about osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis is more common in women and usually affects people from the age of 45 onwards. The parts of the body most commonly affected are the knees, hands, hips, and back. Being overweight can make you more likely to get osteoarthritis and can make it worse. Having a family history of osteoarthritis increases your risk of developing it.

• The pain occurs after sitting for a long period of time or sleeping with the joints stiffening, with moving then becoming more difficult.
• The affected area is tender to touch and the pain increases when you are too active but gets better with rest.

• Osteoarthritis is caused by mechanical wear and tear on joints, starting with the roughening of cartilage.
• Injury from sports which place a lot of strain on joints such as intense running, jumping, and sudden stops, such as basketball or trail running.
• Joint-related conditions such as gout can cause the cartilage around joints to become thin.
• The thinning of the cartilage forces the tendons and ligaments to work harder when there is movement in the joint, leading to inflammation and swelling.

• There is no definitive treatment for arthritis, but it is possible to slow down the onset and reduces the severity of the symptoms.
• Regular exercise, maintaining a healthy weight and improving your posture reduces the pressure on your joints and are all ways to minimise the effects of osteoarthritis
• Doing regular exercise will keep muscles around a joint strong, and this will help to support and stabilise a joint affected by osteoarthritis.
• It is important you have good fitting footwear with shock absorbing material under your foot
• Enertor PX1 insoles will reduce the impact by 60% looking after your joints and also giving a good support in the midfoot. Wear the insoles in your daily shoes and trainers.