[Sports Injuries] Joints are most afraid of these things!

1. Fear of getting old

The human body itself is a complex machine. Like a machine, each organ and part has a certain service life. The service life of the knee joint is 60-70 years. After the age of 60, 60% of people will show obvious degeneration.

With age and injuries caused by various reasons, the degeneration and wear of articular cartilage gradually increase. Without the protection of cartilage, bones rub against bones when walking, and the nerves on the outermost periosteum of the bones and the surrounding synovium are rich, causing pain.

Knee osteoarthritis

2. Fear of being “heavy”

First, the weight of obese people mostly exceeds the normal weight that the knee joint can bear, resulting in uneven force on the knee joint and increased joint load; second, in addition to bearing their own weight, the knee joint also has to bear the additional pressure generated by different postures of the human body.

If the knee joint is in a state of weight-bearing and high pressure for a long time, the friction of the cartilage edge will increase, accelerating the loss of cartilage. Its cushioning, pressure resistance and shock absorption functions will be greatly reduced, resulting in symptoms such as knee pain, swelling, stiffness and restricted movement.

3. Fear of laziness

Appropriate exercise can, firstly, stimulate the flow of synovial fluid in the joints to provide nutrients to the cartilage; secondly, it can exercise the strength of the quadriceps. Sitting for a long time will cause the thigh (quadriceps) to atrophy, and thus cannot share the external force impact during joint movement. All the pressure will be placed on the knee, causing the stability of the knee joint to deteriorate.

Especially for middle-aged and elderly people, once they stop exercising, their cardiopulmonary function will gradually deteriorate, and metabolic diseases such as obesity and "three highs" will follow. Exercise tolerance will further decrease, and their physical condition will fall into a larger vicious circle.

4. Fear of “Diligence”

Appropriate exercise stimulation can make the synovial fluid in the knee flow in the joint, help the knee joint to move better and provide nutrients. However, excessive exercise, haste for quick results, blindly setting a big goal for yourself, will result in excessive intensity, the knee will not be fully stretched and warmed up, the joint friction will be large, the ligament will be tight and easy to break, and the knee joint will be easily injured.

Therefore, the knee joint prefers scientific exercise, moderate exercise, gradual progress, stretching before and after exercise, and if you feel uncomfortable during exercise, stop and rest, don't insist blindly. Pain is actually the best signal, it tells us to rest, slow down or change the way of exercise.

5. Fear of being hurt

Knee arthritis is not exclusive to the elderly. Trauma is an important reason why young people are afflicted with osteoarthritis.

Source: Department of Minimally Invasive Joint Surgery, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine