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Understanding Degenerative Arthritis
By James Kronefield
Degenerative arthritis is a disease that affects millions of people all over the world. It is also known as osteoarthritis. However, once it reaches the stage of degenerative it becomes even more serious. This condition affects the fingers, spine, knees and hips along with other joints and it is the most common type of known today. Degenerative affects the body by breaking down the cartilage of the affected joints. It can affect multiple joints at one time. The cartilage is the substance that prevents the bones from rubbing together in the joints and causing pain. When a person suffers from this condition the cartilage (which is made up of protein) starts to deteriorate and is loss.
This type of causes spurs or new bone to grow in the area where the cartilage is deteriorating. When this starts to happen the person will experience an extreme amount of pain every time they try to use the affected area. Degenerative is called either primary or secondary osteoarthritis. No one really knows exactly what causes primary osteoarthritis to occur in many people other than the fact that it happens when you age. It is known that as you age the water in the cartilage begins to increase and the protein starts to deteriorate which may be a big factor.
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<p class=]()
arthritis" hspace=0 src="http://www.living-with-arthritis.biz/images/degenerative-arthritis.jpg" align=left border=0>Secondary osteoarthritis can be caused by using a joint over and over for long periods of time. When this is done the joint is overused and the cartilage begins to break down sooner than it should. This damage causes degenerative to eventually set in and the damage to your body begins. People that have jobs requiring them to do the same things over and over for many years have this type of osteoarthritis. This repetition has to take place in order to do the job correctly but it is really bad for the body. This is why you should stay away from repetition whenever you can.
It is important to know as much about degenerative arthritis and your body as you can. Even though there is not a single thing you can do to prevent this getting this disease when you get older, you can reduce your risks. Being overweight can cause damage to your spine, hips and knees. Therefore, maintaining a healthy weight can help to eliminate extra strain on the body in these areas and reduce the odds of having this disease in these joints. It is important that everyone do all they can to prolong or eliminate this disease from their future to avoid a lot of unnecessary suffering.
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