Osteoarthritis

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What does Osteoarthritis mean?

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common medical conditon which happen when the cartilage that lines your joints gets worn out or damaged over time, causing bones to rub together. The ends of our bones have a smooth, soft covering layer, called cartilage, that works as a cushion. This cushion is very important because it lets our bones glide past each other easily and safely when you move. 

But if you get OA, this helpful cushion gets worn down over time, which causes your bones to rub against each other when you move your joints. While this wear and tear can happen in any joint, it usually targets the parts of the body that do the most of the movement, which includes:

• Your hand and fingers
• Your lower back
• Your knees and hips
• Your lower back

Risk Factors of Osteoarthritis

Anyone can get this wear and tear in their joints, but certain things make the soft cushion wear away much faster. Here are the main risk factors:

• Age: This is one of the biggest risk factors of OA; your cartilage gets worn down as you get older.
• Obesity: Carrying extra weight puts pressure on your joints, which carry your whole body, knees, and hips, while fat tissues release a type of protein that triggers harmful inflammation in the joints.
• Past injuries: Past joint injuries from falling, sports, or accidents can also lead to post-traumatic joint degeneration after certain years. 
• Metabolic Conditions: Medical conditions such as diabetes or hemochromatosis can also affect your joints severely, resulting in osteoarthritis later.
• Stress on joints: Heavy weight lifting or jobs that require kneeling or constant bending put chronic pressure on the joints.
• Genetics: A family history of osteoarthritis or inherited joint traits can also increase the risk of joint degeneration in a person.
• Menopause: A woman whose periods have stopped, risk of osteoarthritis due to a sharp decline in estrogen levels in the body.

While you cannot change some of the above factors, knowing what puts you at risk is the first step in protecting your joints.

Common Symptoms Associated With Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis doesn't happen overnight. Because the cushion wears away very slowly, the body starts to give mild signals at the starting which get severe later. If your cushion is wearing down, here is what you will start noticing in your body:

• Pain while moving: You will start experiencing joint pain while doing normal activities that you do daily, such as walking, lifting, or bending. 
• Joint stiffness: Your joints start feeling stiff or hard, especially when you wake up in the morning or after sitting for a long time.
• Swelling or puffiness near the joint: You may start noticing puffiness or swelling around the affected area, which gives you pain while doing normal activities.
• Grating sensation: You may start hearing or feeling popping, crackling, or grinding (crepitus) sounds when you climb stairs, move, or walk.
• Loss of flexibility: You start having trouble moving and bending the joints through their full, normal range of motion.
• Instability: You feel like the joint isn't stable and as strong as it used to be.
• Joint deformity: You notice a visible change in the normal shape, structure, or alignment of the joint.

If you see any of the above signs happening regularly, a quick visit to the doctor can help you find easy ways to stop that pain.

Diagnosis of Osteoarthritis 

If your joints are hurting, then the doctor may do these simple tests to check if your cushion is worn away:

• Medical History: The doctor will check for any sort of past injury or surgery you had or if any family member had it.
• Pulse Diagnosis (Nadi Pariksha): The doctor will do a Nadi pariksha to check which of your internal body energies is out of balance.

• Tracking Toxins: They will ask very detailed questions about your digestion to figure out if sticky toxic waste (Ama) is behind your pain or not.

• Symptom analysis: Your doctor will ask about symptoms such as joint stiffness, swelling, pain, and how well you can move your joints.
• Physical Examination: The doctor will look at the affected areas for any sort of redness or swelling. They will also check the mobility and press around the joints to find soft spots or fluid buildup. 
• Imaging Testing: The doctor may ask you for imaging tests such as X-rays, MRI, blood tests, or joint fluid analysis.

Finding out why exactly your joint is hurting is the primary step to move forward for the right care and treatment.

Ayurvedic View of Osteoarthritis 

In Ayurveda, management of OA is a comprehensive approach that targets both the symptoms and underlying systemic imbalance. In Ayurveda, OA is connected with Sandhigatavata, a situation when the Vata dosha gets aggravated and settles in your joints, causing pain, stiffness, or inflammation. 

Vata dosha governs air and movement in the body; if it gets imbalanced, then it destroys the oiliness of the joints. Assessment of a patient in Ayurveda is highly dependent on the prakriti (patient’s unique constitution) and vikriti (their current imbalance), rather than just structural damage. Ayurveda believes that weak digestion is another factor that contributes to imbalance. When digestion is weak, the food is not processed properly; it creates sticky waste, Ama, in the body. These hidden toxins travel through the spaces of your joints and get stuck inside them, causing pain and inflammation.

Management of Osteoarthritis Through Ayurveda

Instead of just treating the pain, Ayurvedic treatment is about returning the body to balance, improving tissue nutrition, and resolving pain and inflammation internally. It includes the following management practices to treat OA:

Use of Internal Herbal Remedies

Ayurveda uses certain herbs such as guggulu, ashwagandha, and shallaki; they are all known for their anti-inflammatory properties that help in strengthening the joint tissues, reducing inflammation, supporting bone density, and soothing the nervous system.

External Procedures & Panchkarma

Ayurveda includes many therapies such as abhyanga to help improve circulation, janu basti to nourish and lubricate joints, swadena to relieve stiffness, and matra basti to help eliminate metabolic waste and combat the dryness characteristic of Vata.

Dietary Guidelines

Ayurvedic nutrition for OA focuses on reducing inflammation and pacifying Vata dosha in the body. It suggests warm, freshly cooked food, healthy fats, and anti-inflammatory spices such as ginger, turmeric, or garlic to add to your food. It also asks you to avoid processed, refined, packaged food, as they contain excessive amounts of salt, sugars, and artificial ingredients.

Lifestyle & Physical Changes

Ayurveda says that for good health, a balanced lifestyle is very important. It asks you to fix your routine by managing your stress, sleeping properly, drinking enough water, eating clean, doing breathing exercises, yoga, and meditation for better mental well-being as well as physical well-being.

Prevention Tips for Osteoarthritis

You do not have to wait for your joints to start hurting before you begin taking care of them. Here are some of the prevention tips that can help to lower the risk and protect your joints:

• Keep your weight maintained because extra weight puts a lot of pressure on your joints, which makes them gradually weaker.
• Follow a good and balanced diet plan that can help give you the right nutrition required for your body.
• Don't do heavy weight lifting at the gym; keep it low so that your joints don't get much pressuried with heavy weights.
• Avoid consuming alcohol and tobacco, because it harms your body very negatively.
• Wear protective equipment if your work requires heavy weight lifting, bending, or constant kneeling.
• Visit your doctor if you notice any sort of change or pain in your joints

Making these changes today is the best way to protect your joints for many years.

Red Flags To Watch Out For

While OA happens slowly over time, joint pain can be a sign of a serious problem. 

• If you have a high fever, as it can be a sign of a dangerous joint infection.
• If you have unexplained weight loss or a history of bone cancer.
• If you see severe redness, heat, or swelling on the affected area.
• If you have severe pain that wakes you up at night.
• If you're unable to walk or bear any weight, as it can be a sign of a severe structural break or acute damage.

If you experience these red flags, then immediately see a doctor.