Ailments and Situations - Arthritis - Causes

Osteoarthritis can be a secondary affect of a number of other conditions. The pain and decreased mobility results from joint cartilage degeneration. Generally, the true cause of the condition is not known.

Obesity is considered a risk factor for osteoarthritis of weight-bearing joints.

The exact cause of Rheumatoid Arthritis is not known, but it is generally considered an autoimmune condition. Possible contributing factors include food sensitivities, free radical damage, heavy metal toxicity, high fat diet, hypothyroidism, and water-borne parasites, such as nugleema amoeba.

Speculation exists around a genetic predisposition to RA and additional research is currently being conducted on this theory.

As previously mentioned, joints become stiffer and pain increases over time as joint cartilage continues to degenerate. Range of motion will also be reduced.

Pain is made worse with exercise and made better with rest. If inactive, you may feel initially stiff in the morning. However, this will dissipate within fifteen to thirty minutes and further decreases with movement. Common tasks may become more difficult to perform.

Occasionally, OA stops and can actually reverse.

As previously mentioned, symptoms are often worse in the morning upon waking and improve over the course of the day. In general, joint pain increases over time and you may find that common tasks become more difficult to perform.