Are You Suffering From Menopause And Arthritis?

Climb up to a life free from menopause arthritis

Recent studies have shown that women in their late forties and early fifties are displaying signs of menopause arthritis - a form of osteoarthritis triggered by menopause. Was it not enough that menopause brought on the hot flashes, night sweats and a variety of aches and pains which kept a woman up at night, that menopause arthritis has now been added to the list? The thought of a flight of stairs makes you want to balk and makes you want to move to a more comfortable but expensive apartment on the ground floor.

But before you start looking at adapting your lifestyle to accommodate this new phenomenon, understand what is happening with your body first.

Understanding what is arthritis

Osteoarthritis or arthritis is a common complaint of women in the age group between thirty to fifty years. Arthritis is caused by the wear and tear of the cartilage around the joints. As this wear and tear is gradual arthritis usually is a complaint of people belonging to an older age group.

Menopause arthritis - What is the connection between the two?

Arthritis has always been more of a complaint with women than with men. The logical hormone connecting menopause with arthritis then seems to be the hormone estrogen. When a woman's ovaries stop producing eggs during menopause her body experiences hormonal imbalances. Especially the levels of the hormone in a woman's body start reducing. Researchers have laid the blame for arthritis on estrogen because of the following reasons:

· The occurrence of arthritis in twice the number of women as the number of men suggests that the trigger to arthritis has to be some hormone exclusive to the female body

· Pregnant women have experienced the symptoms of arthritis more extremely than the average woman. A pregnant woman is also known to have higher levels of estrogen

There are multiple causes which trigger arthritis. While estrogen leads the race in this matter, there are other changes in the woman's body which affect arthritis. During menopause, owing to the hormonal imbalances, a woman is prone to gaining more weight. The weight gained adds more pressure on the knees, causing further wear and tear of the cartilage.

Besides estrogen, there are other hormones in a woman's body which experience the imbalance brought on by menopause. The secretion of these hormones causes the tissues and cartilages around the joints to deteriorate more rapidly.

Menopause arthritis can it be avoided?

There is no fool-proof plan which will keep you free from the clutches of menopause arthritis. However, the onset of arthritis can be prevented by taking small but simple steps:

· Applying hormone topical creams on aches and pains which begin early, can delay the onset of the arthritis. These creams are designed to balance out the estrogen levels in the body and hence help relieve the pain caused by inflammation

· Regulating your diet and switching to a gluten-free diet will make sure that you do not gain more weight and add more pressure on your knees, aiding the wear and tear of tissues around the knee joints. Weight gain also affects other joints besides the knee, like the back, ankles and wrists

· Using a mild anti-inflammatory cream during peri-menopause delays the onset of menopause arthritis

· Using supplements to strengthen the bones from an early age, prevents the early onset of arthritis

Menopause arthritis Herbs that can help

There are also home remedies you can resort to when you begin to first experience the aches in your joints. Indian researchers have placed great faith in the practice of Ayurveda and the use of medicinal herbs to ease aches and pains which lead to the arthritis caused by menopause.

· Boswellia - An Indian herb with no side effects interrupts the inflammation in the joints and the release of biochemicals which cause pain. Many women who have used this herb during perimenopause have had a menopause free of joint and back aches

· Turmeric - Turmeric is the wonder herb of India. The uses of turmeric are vast and varied, primarily used as an antiseptic to heal wounds, turmeric is known to have curcumin which reduces inflammation and eases pain. Application of turmeric paste over aching joints reduces the pain

· Cayenne - More popularly famous as a spice, Cayenne contains capsaicin which works as a soothing painkiller on joint aches. Capsaicin actually encourages the body to release its own hormones responsible for relieving pain

While menopause arthritis is a painful truth most women have to deal with, it does not have to become a way of life. There are natural and medical ways to prolong the onset of arthritis and to deal with its early onset. Switching to a healthier diet and taking care of your body from an earlier age will help you have a more comfortable and pain-free menopause.

In conclusion the best practices for handling arthritis or any of the other 34 menopause symptom is to take a proactive approach to staying healthy, eating a clean, adding more daily fibers to each meal, lower fat and sugar intake, and exercise at least 30 minutes everyday.