Women, Arthritis, and Exercise

The more time we stay active, especially if we're women and older, the more likely our joints won't creak as badly and lead to arthritis.

Australian researchers say they found that even exercising for 90 minutes a week can make a big difference for women in their 70s, but not for the middle-aged.

"I don't think the results are suggesting that you should just become this maniac exerciser," says Dr. Kristiann Heesch, a human-movement expert at the University of Queensland. "What it does suggest is that just adding some walking and moderate activity to your life can make a big benefit."

Worsening problem?

In the United States, 21 percent of adults - or 46 million, more women than men - have arthritis, and half are over 75. The debilitating disease is the country's top cause of disability for middle-aged and older people, according to the Arthritis Foundation.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pegs the annual cost of arthritis to the U.S. economy at $128 bibllion, which agency leaders blame on the dramatically increasing age of the population.

But Heesch warns that as the number of older people continue to rise, arthritis will cause even more of a burden on future societies. For years, she adds, health experts have said that older patients should exercise to keep their joints and muscles strong. Excess weight is a major risk factor for arthritis.

"Indeed, if preventive intervention strategies, such as increasing physical activity even by small amounts, could delay the onset of the symptoms of arthritis, there could be considerable cost savings to the healthcare system and to older women themselves, not to mention reductions in pain and suffering caused by this often debilitating health problem," Heesch says.

75 minutes a week

The three-year study looked at more than 8,700 middle-aged and older women who didn't have stiff and painful joints. The findings show that 70somethings who exercised at least 75 minutes a week complained of fewer arthritic symptoms than women who were less active. And the women who stayed active at least two-and-a-half hours fared the best.

However, researchers said they're not sure why exercise kept arthritis at bay.

"Maybe the exercise directly benefits the joints," says Dr. John Hardin, chief scientific officer at the Arthritis Foundation. "Maybe exercise makes you lose weight and the latter benefits the joints. M aybe exercise causes pain-sensing receptors to become less sensitive so you feel less pain."

But, exercise had no effect on symptoms of arthritis in middle-aged women, says Heesch, who doesn't know why activity provided benefits for one age group and not the other.

"If we could put out a pill that would solve a lot of problems, it would be physical activity, but we can't wrap it up into a little pill and give it to people," Heesch says. "Particularly with the baby boomers getting older, there's going to be a lot more need to address this."