For wholesome knees, 11 kilos lighter could make all of the distinction

General, nevertheless, they reviewed information from 23 research, specializing in the hyperlink between weight acquire and knees osteoarthritis and discover that as contributors acquire weight, their signs and x-ray scans of their knees present worsening osteoarthritis.

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Cited by the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention osteoarthritis as the most typical sort of arthritis; greater than 32 million American adults have degenerative joint illness. It may have an effect on any joint, however the knees are among the many mostly injured joints.

Osteoarthritis develops when the cartilage that acts as a cushion between the bones in a joint breaks down or wears down, giving the situation its nickname “put on and tear.” This causes the bones within the joint to rub towards one another, inflicting ache, stiffness and motion issues.

There isn’t a remedy for osteoarthritis of the knee, however therapy might embrace remedy, bodily remedy, and exercise modifications. If that is not sufficient, knee substitute surgical procedure could also be an choice the place the arthritic components of the joint are eliminated and changed with metallic, plastic or ceramic components.

First carried out within the Nineteen Sixties, this surgical procedure has turn out to be fairly widespread, with greater than 750,000 knee replacements carried out within the U.S. every year, based on the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. Primarily based on their findings, the researchers consider that stopping weight acquire — which they consider is less complicated than dropping pounds — ought to cut back the danger of knee osteoarthritis and the variety of knee replacements wanted.

This text is a part of The Put up’s “Huge Numbers” sequence, which briefly examines the statistical elements of well being points. Further data and associated research can be found on the hyperlinks.