It’s important to maintain healthy bones and joints, especially as you become older. If you develop joint pain it becomes harder to carry out everyday tasks, and this can reduce your quality of life. Plus, if you break a bone later in life, it can take longer to heal.
Fortunately, there are several ways you can direct your lifestyle to keep your bones and joints as healthy as possible and reduce the chances of joint pain as you age:
- Eat a balanced diet: Eating the right food will help preserve your joints and bones. In particular, you need to get enough vitamin D and calcium if you want your bones to stay strong.
- Exercise regularly: Keeping yourself active improves your balance and muscle strength, and this can help reduce the chances of falls. Some types of exercise can even fortify your bones. Do speak to your healthcare provider to check which exercises are suitable for you.
- Cut back on drinking and smoking: If you smoke or drink alcohol, limiting your consumption will be beneficial to many aspects of your health. High alcohol intake and smoking are known to cause osteoporosis, a disease that weakens bones and results in fractures.
Causes and symptoms of osteoporosis and bone pain
If you feel pain and discomfort in your bones or joints – either when you’re still or moving – you may have one of several conditions.
- Pain can be caused by an injury which resulted in a fracture or sprain. You may notice swelling and bruising too.
- If you have developed osteoporosis you may experience back pain and a stooped posture. It can result in a loss of height over time.
- A bone infection may cause the affected site to become red, warm and swollen. You might experience nausea and loss of appetite.
- If the blood supply to your bones is disrupted you may feel weak and unable to use particular joints.
- A mineral deficiency can cause disturbed sleep, fatigue, cramps, weakness, and joint and muscle pain.
If you’re concerned about any of these things you should speak to a medical practitioner for a diagnosis.
Treating bone and joint pain
There are various ways to treat pain in bones and joints, depending on what is causing it. These include:
Pain relievers
Pain relievers help reduce pain but they don’t fix the underlying problem. It may just be that your body needs time to heal itself, or pain relievers may be prescribed alongside another course of treatment. Over-the-counter medicines like ibuprofen (Advil) and acetaminophen (Tylenol) are effective for mild to moderate pain. In more severe cases you may be prescribed morphine or a stronger pain reliever.
Antibiotics
Where an infection is present, your doctor will probably prescribe antibiotics to fight the bacteria that are attacking your body. Common antibiotics for bone infections include ciprofloxacin, clindamycin, and vancomycin.
Nutritional supplements
If you are prescribed with osteoporosis or a mineral deficiency, you need to raise the levels of calcium and vitamin D in your body. You can take supplements in pill, liquid, or chewable form to restore the balance.
At OTCDeal, we offer these and a number of other medications to help fight pain from bones and joints. Click on the following link to see our range of supplements and pain relievers for joint and bone pain.
