Research from Wake Forest University recently shed light on the link between diet, exercise, and knee pain in overweight people.
They discovered that those who eat better and move more tend to suffer less from knee pain over a year-and-a-half period.
This is especially relevant for those with knee arthritis, a condition often associated with aging and excess weight.
Who Took Part in the Study?
The study involved people who were 50 years or older, overweight, and suffering from knee arthritis. A total of 823 individuals joined this research.
Half of them (414 people) were asked to change their diet and exercise routines. The other half (409 people) were just given regular attention but didn’t receive the same health program.
They monitored these individuals for 18 months.
What Did The Results Show?
After 18 months, they compared the two groups. They found out that those who had changed their diet and exercised more felt less knee pain than those who didn’t.
On a scale of 1-10, the first group scored an average of 5.0 for their knee pain, while the second group reported a slightly higher average of 5.5.
Five out of seven other measures they looked at also improved more in the group that dieted and exercised. One major change was weight loss.
The group who dieted and exercised lost an average of 7.7 kilograms (or 8% of their body weight) and their waist sizes reduced by 9 centimeters.
The other group only lost 1.7 kilograms (2% of their body weight), without the same decrease in waist size.
Any Negative Effects?
Throughout the study, there were 169 serious health issues that came up among the participants.
But, the research team assured that none of these problems were directly related to the study. This means that changing diet and exercise habits did not cause harm to the participants.
Conclusion and Future Implications
This research shows that older adults with knee arthritis can significantly benefit from diet changes and regular exercise.
Losing weight and reducing waist size might provide added health benefits. This is another reason why it’s important to lead a healthy lifestyle, even in our older years.
If you’re interested in learning more about pain relief, you might want to look up other research findings. Some studies discuss the effectiveness of different drugs for neuropathic pain.
Other research talks about how medical marijuana for pain relief might lead to a slightly higher risk of heart problems.
There are also new methods being developed to alleviate back pain without the use of drugs. Plus, you should be aware of some pain relief drugs that might negatively affect your blood pressure.
This Wake Forest University study was conducted by Stephen P. Messier and his team, and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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