In our previous article, we talked about why our joints age like our body. To put it simply, the
cartilage in our joints degrade over time due to our daily use of them. Though our cartilage possesses regenerative properties, their regenerative capabilities are limited and decrease with time. Thus, the cartilage’s capacity to regenerate healthy tissues is generally unable to keep up with its progressive degradation.
This is Why it is Really Important to Take Good Care of Our Cartilage
Just as we cannot prevent ourselves from aging, we are also unable to stop our cartilage from degrading progressively. Our cartilage is not something we can regain back with the snap of our fingers, but it is something essential for our everyday activities. Thus, while we still can, we should make the effort to take good care of our cartilage and maintain joint health.
How do We Maintain Joint Health?
There are many aspects involved in maintaining optimal joint health but regardless, here are 4 simple tips and tricks we can follow to keep our joints happy and healthy.
Tip 1 – Watch what you eat
Have you ever heard of the saying “You are what you eat”? Your diet is important in maintaining and prolonging your joint health. Depending on what you eat and the amount you eat, your food choices can help to improve or worsen the condition of your joints.
To improve your joints, you can consider consuming more healthy oily fish such as salmon and sardine¹. Salmon and sardine contain Omega-3 fatty acids which can reduce inflammation in the joints¹. If you’re not a fish lover, fret not - there are other food alternatives that also contain these beneficial fatty acids, such as chia seeds and seaweed¹.
Berries such as strawberries and blueberries are also good for your joints. These berries are rich in antioxidants, therefore, protecting our joints from damage as a result of oxidation, a process naturally occurring in our body². Thus, helping to protect our joints from damage and relieve joint pain.
On the flip side, foods that are pro-inflammatory should be eaten less so that they do not aggravate the joints significantly. Pro-inflammatory food includes fried foods, refined carbohydrates, such as bread and white rice, as well as unhealthy sweets.
Tip 2 – Exercise regularly
This is an age-old tip you’ve probably heard of before, but exercise, together with a good diet, is really the cornerstone for overall good health, including our joint health. Leading an active lifestyle keeps our joints active and prevents the cartilage from thinning³. Exercise has also been shown to reduce joint pain and improve physical function⁴. There are some exercises that are more joint-friendly than others. Low-impact exercises such as swimming or using the elliptical machine at the gym can help to lessen the stress exerted on your joints as you move. Even if you aren’t considering such aerobic exercises, simply taking a walk can help one stay more active and you don’t necessarily have to set aside extra time for this. You can choose to walk home or head out to buy food instead of always ordering in.
However, all things should be done in moderation. As such, we should avoid over exercising, lest we overexert our joints and aggravate things. On top of that, always remember to start slowly to ease your joints into physical activity especially if you have not exercised for a while. For those with weaker knees such as the elderly, less intensive low-impact physical activities such as leisure walking or Tai-chi are viable options that will allow you to keep fit and exercise too.
Tip 3 - Maintain a healthy weight
While this may not be immediately obvious, our body weight actually contributes to the stress placed on our weight-bearing joints, such as our ankles, knees and hips. Being overweight naturally puts greater stress on these joints and makes them degrade faster. Thus, maintaining a healthy weight is also key to reducing stress exerted on our joints and helps to slow down joint degradation. This is related to tip 1 and 2 - by maintaining a healthy diet and exercising regularly, you can maintain your current weight or reach your desirable weight. Your joints will definitely thank you for offloading some stress for them!
Tip 4 – Supplementing your diet
Your diet may be unable to provide you with all the nutrients essential for a healthy joint. Thus, you may consider incorporating joint supplements to complement your diet. Joint supplements provide various benefits that can support joint health, such as:
Relieving pain
Reducing inflammation
Decreasing joint stiffness
Improving physical function
Ginflex™ is one of the joint supplements that provides all 4 benefits above with its natural, optimized formula.
Stay tuned to other articles in the subsequent weeks, as we dive deep into each of the ingredients in Ginflex and how they are able to help you with your joint and cartilage health.
Being a dietary supplement, Ginflex™ is able to deliver these health benefits in 1 single capsule, which is definitely more convenient and easier to keep up with compared to exercising, weight loss and diet modification. However, it should be duly noted that these health supplements cannot replace the benefits a good diet and exercise can offer.
To achieve optimal joint health, Ginflex™ can be paired with all the tips mentioned above. Together with the tips we mentioned in the article, Ginflex™ is able to supplement your joint and cartilage health. Feel the difference with Ginflex™!
References
1. Goldberg, R.J. and Katz, J. (2007). A meta-analysis of the analgesic effects of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid supplementation for inflammatory joint pain. Pain, [online] 129(1-2), pp.210–23.
2. Basu, A., Schell, J. and Hal Scofield, R. (2018). Dietary fruits and arthritis. Food & Function, [online] 9(1), pp.70–77. doi:10.1039/C7FO01435J.
3. Hunter, D.J. and Eckstein, F. (2009). Exercise and osteoarthritis. Journal of Anatomy, [online] 214(2), pp.197–207. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7580.2008.01013. x.
4. Fransen, M., McConnell, S., Harmer, A.R., Esch, M.V. der, Simic, M. and Bennell, K.L. (2015). Exercise for osteoarthritis of the knee. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2015, (1).
5. Vishal, A.A., Mishra, A. and Raychaudhuri, S.P. (2011). A Double Blind, Randomized, Placebo Controlled Clinical Study Evaluates the Early Efficacy of Aflapin® in Subjects with Osteoarthritis of Knee. International Journal of Medical Sciences, 8(7), pp.615–622.
6. Wacker.com. 2022. [online] Available at: <https://www.wacker.com/h/medias/7291-EN.pdf>
Disclaimer: This article is intended for informational or educational purposes only, and does not substitute professional medical advice or consultations with healthcare professionals. The disclaimer also provides that no warranties are given in relation to the medical information supplied in the article, and that no liability will accrue to Miraco Nutripharm Pte Ltd or any affiliated authors in the event that a user suffers any loss as a result of reliance upon the information.