What Does Joint Pain Mean?
Think your joint pain is just arthritis due to age? Think again!
Joint pain can mean a few different things about what’s going on in your body if you take the time to listen to it.
This month’s educational theme is ‘Aches and Pains’ So we’re compiling all of our favorite tips on working through aches and pains. This week we’re focusing on what joint pain may be telling us.
Speaking of joints, the back has a lot of them! If you’re somebody who bas back pain or disc issues, come to “Myth-busting Low Back Pain” on August 10 and 11 to figure out how to move forward. Sign up HERE.
#1. Joint stiffness and pain can mean you’ve been sitting or standing for too long
Our joints surfaces receive most of their nutrition from movement…kind of like a sponge being rung out to soak up new water. Movement helps our joints clear out cellular waste and bring in new nutrients. But when we stay in one position for too long and avoid movement, our joints start to feel really stiff and achy. This is why the joints in our spine feel tight and achy after being in the car for too long…not enough movement or blood flow. So joint pain can be your body telling you it’s time to get up and go for a walk.
Joints can also get achy if we lead a generally low-activity lifestyle. Bump up your activity gradually to avoid overdoing it!
If you want some mobility routines for stiff achy joints, sign up for a free one-on-one with one of our Doctors of Physical Therapy.
#2. Joint pain can mean systemic inflammation
More and more scientific research is pointing toward arthritis as an inflammation-based disease. If more than one joint is aching, it could mean that you have a lot of generalized inflammation in your body, which can be caused by poor nutrition, too much exercise, not enough exercise, high stress levels, or inadequate sleep. Other signs of inflammation in the body include: heart disease, high blood pressure, autoimmune disease, asthma, inflammatory bowel disease, and even depression.
The good news is that we have many tools to fight joint pain that aren’t medication or surgery including:
- Anti-inflammatory foods
- Sleep
- Meditation or Breathwork
- Exercise
#3. Joint pain can mean an imbalance in our gut.
When our gut is functioning normally, we have a lot of bacteria in there that make their own anti-inflammatory compounds. However, if the balance in our intestines shifts, the bacteria can create inflammatory chemicals that circulate through our bodies and result in joint pain.
For example, too many saturated fats (like in pastries, cakes, cured meats like sausages and bacon) can result in MORE cartilage erosion and worsened joint pain, while a better balance of Omega-3 fats (in walnuts, fatty fish, seaweeds, and flax/chia seeds) can be protective against arthritis.
This means that we can actually improve joint pain through our diet!
Sign-up for a one-on-one with our nutrition educator Nikki to optimize your nutrition for healing joint pain!
Join our upcoming workshop, "Myth-busting Low Back Pain"
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