Arthritis is often associated with older people however it can affect anyone at any age in fact according to the NHS website over 10 million people in the UK alone suffer from it. It is a common condition that causes pain, stiffness and inflammation in a joint.
There are two common types of Arthritis, Osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid arthritis.
Osteoarthritis affects the smooth cartilage of a joint, making movement more difficult than usual, causing discomfort and pain. This type of arthritis is the most common type often affecting people over the age of 40, mainly women who have a history of it in their family, however it can still affect anyone at any age. Osteoarthritis can often lead to bone rubbing bone which ends up altering the shape of the joint and forcing the bones out of their usual position. Which is what you may have saw in some people previously.
Osteoarthritis most often affects the following joints:
- Hands
- Spine
- Ankles
- Knees
- Hips
Rheumatoid arthritis is the second type of arthritis and usually occurs when the body’s immune system targets affected joints which then leads to pain and inflammation. This can get worse very quickly, so it is highly recommended to seek a doctor help if you feel like you might have this type of arthritis, or any of that matter. According to versusarthritis.org The quicker you are diagnosed the more effective treatments can be.
There can be various symptoms of arthritis depending on the type you have, so it is vital you get checked by a doctor for a diagnosis if you have any of the following:
- Joint pain
- Stiffness and tenderness
- Inflammation around joints
- Restricted movement
- Warm or red skin over joints
- Weakness in joints
Within recent years more younger people are developing Arthritis, this is called Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA.) According to versusarthritis.org JIA usually first occurs before a persons 16th birthday and is more common in girls, school age or teenagers. We suspect this could have a link to the over use of mobile phones. Everydayhealth.com explains "kids are also experiencing significant joint pain in their wrists and fingers caused by frequent texting on cell phones and playing video games on devices like Xbox and Gameboy. In this survey of 257 children ages 9 to 15 years, girls who used mobile phones reported twice as much pain compared with boys; the girls also sent an average of 50 text messages per day."
So, kids, teens, adults - everyone, we suggest putting down that mobile for at least an hour or 2 a day. You will thank us for it in later life.
