How to exercise to protect joints in the elderly

　　To be precise, osteoarthritis is an irreversible degeneration of the joint itself, the most common being arthritis of the knee joint. Its incidence is closely related to age. X-rays show that only 5% of people under the age of 35 have an incidence, while those over 65 have an incidence of more than 70%. Osteoarthrosis is one of the most common and costly disease , not only brings a lot of inconvenience to patients' daily life, but also costs a lot of money for treatment and testing. If treatment is delayed, it can lead to excruciating pain, worsening of the disease, limited mobility, pressure ulcers, falls and fractures. Current treatments for osteoarthritis include weight loss by the patient, exercise , physical therapy, taking analgesics, using non-steroidal drugs, surgical treatment, etc., but the effects are very limited.

　　It is absolutely true that life lies in movement. Moderate exercise is an effective way to reduce joint pain. Patients can choose gentle exercise with a small amount of activity, such as walking, moving the waist, hips or limbs in place to move the joints throughout the body. Here is a simple and effective joint exercise method recommended. 1. The patient lies supine on the bed, with both lower limbs straightened, and performs bending and straightening movements of the two knee joints, similar to kicking movements on the bed, 30 to 50 times each time. After adapting, raise the lower limbs respectively and then do the above activities. 2. The patient holds the horizontal bar with both hands, lifts one foot, and performs forward and backward kicking movements of the calf, gradually increasing the range, intensity, and frequency of the kicks. This type of exercise is moderate in intensity, effectively overcomes the weight of the limbs, is simple and convenient, can relieve limb degeneration and joint stiffness, enhance muscle strength of the lower and lower legs, improve joint stability, reduce bone loss, and prevent osteoporosis. Many patients with osteoarthritis are afraid of pain and worry that exercise will aggravate the condition, so they rarely exercise, which can easily accelerate the progression of the disease. Because lack of exercise will not only increase the stiffness of muscles and joints, but also accelerate joint degeneration and worsen the condition.

　　But excessive exercise is also wrong. We do not encourage the elderly to deliberately climb mountains and stairs in order to exercise their joints, as this will aggravate joint degeneration. Many patients who came to the outpatient clinic complained of knee joint pain and edema, and asked about their medical history. They said they were too tired from climbing the mountain in the past two days. Patients are often reluctant to ask them to stop climbing. You know, the meaning of caring for your joints is to use them rationally.