- Osteoarthritis is caused by wear and tear.
- Activity causes wear and tear. The more you use your knees the faster they will wear down.
- Obesity increases wear and tear on the joints.
- The longer someone lives the more wear and tear their joints will endure.
- People are more obese today than 50 years ago which helps explain the increase in osteoarthritis.
- Osteoarthritis is more common today than 50 years ago because people are living longer.
Age and BMI were positively associated with knee OA prevalence (P<0.0001 for both variables), but at all ages, knee OA prevalence was at least twice as high in the postindustrial sample than in the early industrial sample, even after controlling for BMI.
The results of this study are thus clinically significant because they indicate that knee OA may be more preventable than is currently supposed. Given evidence that nearly all knee OA is associated with loading-induced damage to joint tissues, either because the loads are abnormal or the tissues are structurally weak, one especially important source of environmental change that warrants greater attention is whether and how joint loading has altered.
Trauma has presumably always predisposed some individuals to knee OA, as suggested by the predominate of unilateral knee OA since prehistoric times...
...another possibility that merits more study is physical inactivity, which has become epidemic during the postindustrial era. Less physically active individuals who load their joints less develop thinner cartilage with lower proteoglycan content as well as weaker muscles responsible for protecting joints by stabilizing them and limiting joint reaction forces.
Keys to preventing knee joint osteoarthritis:
- Correct any posture imbalances you have so that your load joints line up vertically and horizontally from the sagittal and frontal planes.
- Restore full joint range of motion to all your joints and use that range of motion on a daily basis.
- Load your joints with impact daily to strengthen bones and thicken cartilage.
Sources:
Knee osteoarthritis has doubled in prevalence since the mid-20th century
Skeletons say arthritis isn't about aging - it's about activity