Good News for Folks with Osteoarthritis

If you've developed the wear-and-tear disease of osteoarthritis, you might think it's all downhill from here. Well, not if you walk uphill — or just walk! A new study shows that a walking regimen, along with a weight-loss diet, can reduce pain and reverse disability in people with osteoarthritis.

The results of the 18-month study — named IDEA, for Intensive Diet and Exercise — were reported by researchers from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, at the 2011 annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology.

The study involved 454 overweight people (72% of them women), with an average age of 66 years. The participants were divided into three groups. One group was put on a diet intended to reduce weight by at least 10%. One group exercised three days a week, for 15 to 20 minutes, walking on two days and weight-lifting on one. The third group did both — they dieted and exercised.

After 18 months, the diet-and-exercise group reported an average 51% decrease in pain (more than double the diet-only and exercise-only groups), with 4 out of 10 saying their pain was no more than 0 or 1 on a scale of 1 to 10.

The combo group also had a 47% increase in "functional status" (the ability to perform everyday activities), and a 12% increase in walking speed. The diet-only and exercise-only groups also improved in those feel-better parameters, but not nearly as much.

The diet-and-exercise folks "reversed the trend of declining mobility that is seen in older adults," said the study leader.

The bottom line is that it's never too late to feel better — in fact, to feel great!

References

"Diet and Exercise Reduce Pain in Osteoarthritis," American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 2011 Annual Meeting: Abstract 722. Presented November 6, 2011 (printed in Medscape)