One in three American adults are affected by arthritis. It is documented to be the leading cause of disability in the US. Some stay-at-home habits and work from home may make things worse as we are spending long hours sitting without making frequent breaks for moving or exercising. This puts an extra strain on our joints and contributes to stiffness and arthritis pain.
What to do? Here are some suggestions.
- While you work:
- Choose a chair that supports your lower back
- Keep your head and shoulders up straight
- Make sure your working surface is at the proper height, so you don’t have to lean forward
Take breaks to move your body and get blood flowing while you browse internet or watch Netflix. You can set a timer on your phone to remind you to move around every hour, for example.
You can also make a habit from this smart trick: keep a small cup of water next to you, and when that cup is empty, that’s your cue to get up and move a little. Not only will it help you stay hydrated, it will make you move more often.
2. While you are on your phone:
A common misconception is that arthritis is an ‘old person’s disease.’ But, in fact, arthritis is getting younger and it can arise in many forms and affect people of all ages – including children and adolescents.
According to Cleveland Clinic researcher, for every inch you drop your head forward, you double the load on those muscles. Looking down at your phone, with your chin to your chest, can put about 60 pounds of force on your neck. You want to come up with a way to keep your phone at an eye level or avoid looking down for prolonged periods of time.
3. Consider changing your daily routine to include more movement of at least 30 minutes.
The pain may prove to be debilitating, but if you integrate physical activity in the form of any exercises such as walking, biking, swimming, yoga, or dancing, you’ll help your cause. Moderate physical activity most days of the week will allow you to regain the ease of movements faster.
4. Make adjustments to your diet:
Research shows that some foods contribute to the pain of some arthritis sufferers. Among those are processed foods, sugars and refined carbs, corn oil, salt, tobacco and alcohol, some vegetable like eggplant, tomatoes, and green pepper.
While cutting on the foods listed above, add more of these: oily fish, nuts, seeds, and green vegetables especially celery and broccoli.
Some more suggestions:
-eat a portion of fresh string beans every day.
– steep 1 cup of fully packed washed parsley in 1 quart of boiling water. After 15 minutes, strain the juice and refrigerate. Drink ½ cup of parsley juice before every meal. Observe how your body reacts to the juice and adjust.
– eat cherries of any kind: sweet or sour, fresh or frozen. Again, listen to your body, and you will soon know if the cherries seem to be making you feel better.
Use Acupressure to Help Get Relief from Arthritis
When you activate a certain acupressure point, it will release trapped energy, and this energy helps eliminate pain and heal the joints.
When you relieve your body of pain, you also let go of the entrapped stress and tension in the body. When you are more relaxed, you breathe better and basically spread energy throughout the body.
Activate the below-mentioned pressure points for arthritis by pressing and holding them for longer periods of time to get relief:
- Liver Acupressure point
2. Gall Bladder Acupressure Point (please take the image of B 60 here https://www.modernreflexology.com/acupressure-points-to-relieve-hip-back-pain/)
3. Large Intestine Acupressure Point (The second picture from left to right https://www.flyingneedleacupuncture.com/blog/3-acupressure-points-to-manage-stress )
Start to activate these points whenever you feel the pain starting. Also, when you get up in the morning, you may feel the arthritis pain at its peak. So, before you hop out of bed, start stimulating the points above.
Kathy Larionova
References:
- Bordoni, A., et al. (2017). Dairy
products and inflammation: A review of the clinical evidence. DOI:
10.1080/10408398.2014.967385 - Icahn School of Medicine at Mount
Sinai. (2009). Study shows that reducing processed and fried food intake
lowers related health risks and restores body’s defenses [Press release].
mountsinai.org/about/newsroom/2009/study-shows-that-reducing-processed-and-fried-food-intake-lowers-related-health-risks-and-restores-bodys-defenses - Mayo Clinic Staff. (2019).
Rheumatoid arthritis.
mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/rheumatoid-arthritis/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20353653
