Factors That Can Cause Arthritis

By Anthony Martin


Certain health conditions are caused by risk factors that are both modifiable and not modifiable. It is worse when the factors cannot be modified since they are natural and bound to occur. For instance, in the case of arthritis, some modifiable risk factors for it include diet, inactivity, smoking, joint injuries, and occupation. On the other hand, one cannot control things like hormones, age, sex and one's genetic makeup. This is why these factors are termed non-modifiable.

Age is not a modifiable risk factor because one cannot control it. As long as one grows, there is every tendency that the joints would become stiff due to stress or prolonged inactivity. The cartilage also wears out as one grows up, leaving the bones to interact with each other thereby causing pain and inflammation.

If 64 out of every 100 patients are women, it means that one is likely to have the challenge by being a female. Actually, while the different forms of this condition are peculiar to the female gender, only Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and gout are known to affect the males more. One can, therefore, conclude from these facts that one's sex is a determining factor and since one cannot control or change his or her sex, it remains a non-modifiable one.

One should also consider hormones when trying to determine the likely causes of this problem. There are certain hormones in the body which make it more pronounced in the females than in males. These hormones affect it to the point that one can say that 70 out of every affected patient will be women having the rheumatoid type. In other words, fewer men are affected by the hormones that can cause this condition.

Many health conditions are hereditary and the same applies to this one. The gene called human leukocyte antigen (HLA) can cause this problem when passed from one generation to another. Although there are many other causes of it, this particular gene is quite responsible for a number of well-known cases.

To reduce the number of these patients in Russellville AR today, people must learn to be active. Instead of sitting at home all day, it will make more sense to take a walk or jog for about 30 minutes regularly. This will make the bones to be more flexible and the stiffness that causes pains at the joints will disappear. Since this is what one can do by making a decision, it can be said that activity or inactivity is a modifiable risk factor.

One also has to take note of the food that is taken. Some foods increase the chances of having this sickness than others. For example, foods containing a lot of sodium salts will do nobody any good if the intention is to prevent this condition. Instead, bananas and taking a lot of water should be rather encouraged.

Smoking is also bad for the bones. It makes the condition to get worse and retards the healing processes of the bones. Even though the exact way this happens is not yet known, scientists are quite convinced that smoking does not help people with bone problems. It is therefore advisable to quit smoking in order to remain healthy.




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