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Learn more about our knees and joints..
by: lucywong
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It awakens in me an untold pain to see many aged men and women who are bent with miseries and limped as they walked with their canes, sometimes alone, sometimes accompanied with their daughters. I also noticed that they were also murmuring and lamenting how sorrowful and unfortunate they were. And wished for those once upon a time.... when they could run after dogs and cats, played hide and seek and screaming with delight in shallow waters, chasing one another.
Some of their faces were expressionless, trying to hold on their miseries. Seeing such painful knees, I feel that I am obliged to write on some of my tips towards maintaining healthy joints even to the age of 97. I sometimes joke with my friend about daring him to live 100. He jokingly replied 97 can do. Well, we cannot determine how long we can live. It is not our choice to how long one can live. But one thing for certain is that we can live a healthier and happier life if we do take care of our health as one should.
As one advances in ages, various tissues within the joint begin to break down. Loss of flexibility is due to the combined deterioration of tendons, ligaments and cartilage. Degenerative changes are usually associated with advancing ages, that is why we see disabilities and complications among the elders everywhere. Most of them have difficulties in walking and climbing staircases.
First of all, we should understand that our joints are made up of synovial fluid which is used to cushion the force of movement between bones. The fluid gets 'thinner' with age. This change has a dramatic negative effect on joint flexibility.
The articular cartilage are clear structures normally providing a protective coating against friction when our bones rub each other. This cartilage becomes opaque, cracks and frays as the joint ages. These changes will cause increased joint pain and decreased mobility.
The tendons and ligaments are another protective shield for our bones. Changes in collagen and elastin production result in fragmented tissues. This degeneration is augmented by scar tissue deposition and calcification primarily due to age-related injury. The resulting structures are less resilient, with increasing loss of flexion and extension.
Talking about injury, all joints are subjected to extreme daily trauma, increasing age results in cumulative injuries. Repairs are generally detrimental to optimal function. Fibrous and calcified new material replace elastic and resilient original tissue. It will result in archness, stiffness and reduced effective mobility.
The flexibility of our knees and elbows should be maintained so as to prevent further damage, but worst of all, is this incessant discomfort and pain that is most unbearable, throughout our whole life.. We can't see with our naked eyes the degenerative damages inside our joints and bones, but unseeing doesn't mean that it is not happening.
The best answer towards solving the above is going into preventive measures. Don't feel that one is doomed to face those inevitable miseries, fear not, the answer is just be wisely prepared to prevent it from happening at the first place! Don't wait until it is too late.
Those old men and women we see on the street can be us in another 20 or 40 years time....
About the Author
Vist Lucy Wong's blog 4 dimension of health and let Professor of Love show you how to maintain perfect health with her health tips. All of us should go for all 4 dimensions of health to achieve total health and happiness. The website url is http://lucystips.blogspot.com.
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