7 Ways Weight Gain Causes Joint Pain
Weight gain is associated with many hazard health risks.
Having the right body mass index (BMI) can keep us away from several diseases. Joint pain is one of those health risks if you put on too much weight.
What is joint pain?
Joint pain is discomfort, aches or inflammation in joints of our body. It can happen in any joints of our body.
There are several reasons why joint pain happens. It can be due to a joint injury or illness or nutritional deficiency.
However, one common cause of joint pain is weight gain. When it is severe, you might be unable to move your joints.
What are some common causes of joint pain?
Several conditions cause joint pain. Let’s look into some common causes.
Arthritis
The most common form or cause of joint pain is Arthritis. Arthritis can cause mild to severe damage in joints.
The patient suffers from pain in the wrist, arm joints, knee joints, and hip joints. Severe arthritis can deform the joints over time.
It happens mostly in adults over the age of 40.
Overuse of joints
Temporary pain in joints can result from the overuse of joints.
If you’re involved in a physical activity that puts extra stress or weight on joints, you can experience joint pain. However, this type of pain can go away after proper rest.
Injury or inflammation
If your joint experiences severe impact due to an injury, then it is common to experience joint pain.
You also experience joint pain when inflammation occurs due to overuse. The severity level of pain depends on the severity of injury or inflammation.
Excessive weight gain
Excessive weight gain causes joint pain, as well. The excess weight, which is also called obesity, is linked to several diseases, and joint pain is one of them.
Weight gain results in extra burden on weight-bearing joints and leads to cartilage breakdown. It can result in severe joint pain if weight gain is rapid.
How does weight gain cause joint pain?
Weight gain is linked to joint pain. Let’s look into some ways how weight gain causes joint pain.
1. Weight gain puts extra stress on joints
If someone is suffering from any joint disease, then weight gain can worsen the situation.
Excessive weight puts extra stress and strain on joints and makes it very difficult even to move the joints.
Even if you’re just about 10 pounds overweight, it means you’re adding 30-40 pounds extra weight on your knee joints.
2. Excessive fats can result in cartilage breakdown
When the breakdown of cartilage happens, arthritis develops. Excess weight means more fats in your body.
Fat is active tissue. It releases chemicals that lead to cartilage damage due to inflammation caused by fats.
When the breakdown of cartilage starts happening, osteoarthritis starts to develop quickly, which is a common cause of joint pain.
3. Obesity is linked to Arthritis
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has stated that one out of three arthritis patients have obesity as well.
Arthritis can develop due to excess weight because it impacts badly on joints as joints have to carry extra weight.
Obesity can damage the nutritional value of food and cause a deficiency of essential substances needed for joint mobility.
4. Weight gain increases inflammatory factors
Weight gain not only puts extra stress on joints, but it increases the inflammatory factors as well.
Inflammatory factors like digestive disorder, neuro issues, and immune disorders are increased by excessive weight gain.
Inflammatory enzymes weaken the tissues, nerves, and joints. This leads to severe joint pain and cartilage breakdown.
5. Weight gain causes gout
Gout is a common cause of joint pain. It is a condition where crystals build up in the joints and decreased mobility of the joints and cause pain.
These crystals develop when kidneys produce uric acid, that is often the result of increased insulin level.
Obese people have a higher insulin level which can lead to a higher level of uric acid in the body.
6. Every added pound equals to 4 pounds
According to the Arthritis Foundation, The impact of excess weight on joints is not measured as pound by the pound; every added pound means 4 extra pounds.
It means if you’re around 100 pounds overweight, then 400 pounds extra weight on your joints. It leads to regular wear and tear of weight-bearing joints and quickly leads to osteoarthritis.
7. Excess weight lowers your muscle activity
Obese people often feel tired and spend most of their time sitting and laying on the bed. If you keep your muscles inactive, then their range of motion and strength decreases.
It often results in knee pain and overall joint pain. You’ll suffer from swelling in joints, stiffness, and decreased mobility of the joints.
