Don’t Settle for the Inevitable. Support your Joint Health!
Once upon a time, you could bend down without hearing your knees pop. Or play tennis without spending the rest of your day with your elbow stuck as if you’re doing The Robot dance. Or go for a walk without your knees feeling less like joints and more like a door hinge that needs a serious squirt of WD-40. Focusing on supporting joint health is important, especially as we age.
Ah, joint pain. Is it completely avoidable? Perhaps there are some people who age without this happening. But as we get older, the shock-absorbing abilities of our joints typically diminish. Gone are the days of playing hopscotch with the kids without paying for it later with a painful knee. This does not mean you should put away the chalk and rock and relegate yourself to the window seat. It just means you need to put joint health a little higher on your priority list so your joints age the healthy way.
Joint Function
Our joints function best when the cartilage, connective tissues, muscles, and other structures surrounding them remain healthy. Synovial fluid is key to lubricating the joints and allowing the joint surfaces to move more smoothly.
Think of it this way. When you’re hopping over that skipped square in hopscotch or hitting that backhand during your tennis match, cartilage cushions the surfaces of your joints, while synovial fluid helps them move smoothly.
Several nutrients and compounds are also involved in maintaining healthy cartilage and connective tissue. In addition to Glucosamine, your joint health is supported by a number of nutrients, proteins, molecules, and enzymes. Chondroitin sulfate helps to attract fluid, drawing nutrients into the cartilage. Strong cartilage is more shock absorbent. You may also want to consider methylsulfonylmethane (MSM), sulfur, and hyaluronic acid (or HA), which are used by the body to help maintain and support joint health.
Movement is also important for joint health. Regular movement helps maintain mobility, flexibility, muscle strength, and joint function.
Joint Health and Diet
A diet rich in fresh foods goes a long way in providing the body with what it needs for optimal wellness. And YES, this includes your joints! People sometimes fail to realize that diet and exercise impact us in a holistic way, not just our guts or our muscles. All of the body!
So, avoiding processed ingredients and meals heavy in them is a great way to start. Focus on eating fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats. Also, don’t forget to drink your water! Focus on eating a full-body, gut-healthy diet.
You can also use nutritional supplements to complement a healthy diet. Nature’s Sunshine offers several products designed to support bone and joint health. If you’re interested in nutritional support for your joints, you can explore the Bone and Joint Health products or contact me if you have questions about which products may fit your needs.
If joint or muscle discomfort is already making movement more difficult, read Painful Joints and Stiff Muscles | Move Freely for practical ways to support comfortable movement.
Happy hopscotching!