Spotlight on Christine Robinson: Clicking Joints Complaint

Today the spotlight is on Christine Robinson who recently informed me that he joints keep clicking when she moves and the noise seems to be getting louder and more frequent.  It is inevitable that your joints will sometimes click maybe after you have been sitting down for a long period of time, or when you just wake up, but if it happens repeatedly throughout the day then it is something that should be looked into.
                      
Like many of us Christine has an office job which requires her to sit staring at her computer screen for many hours throughout the day.  Christine does not do any additional exercise and also does not take any vitamins or supplements.  Whilst her complaint is simply that her bones click rather loudly throughout the day, it is important for Christine to change her everyday habits, incorporating some exercise, so that this does not develop into something more serious.
Over one million people in the UK suffer from osteoarthritis, which is a type of arthritis that is caused by the breakdown and eventual loss of the cartilage of one or more joints.  In some cases the symptoms for this condition appear periodically.  I have listed some of the most common symptoms below:

• a grating or crackling sound or sensation in your joints
• pain or stiffness when you have not moved your joints for a while
• limited range of movements in your joints
• joint tenderness

The more serious symptoms of osteoarthritis are:

• pain, especially when doing load-bearing activities, such as walking
• short-lived stiffness in the morning, which improves in 30 minutes or less when you start to move
• difficulty moving your affected joints or doing certain activities 

The good news is that Christine does not have any of the more serious complaints and at the age of 27 she has more than enough time to set the foundation to not have these complaints in the future.  This is not to suggest that you cannot make positive changes at any age.
I advised Christine to take a cod liver oil supplement daily.  She opted for the Seven Seas cod liver oil extra strength.  After taking this for 3 months Christine can then take the normal strength cod liver oil.
                                
Cardiff based researchers believe that a cod liver oil supplement could delay or even reverse the destruction of joint cartilage inflammatory pain.  It has also been confirmed on BBC news that cod liver oil is actually good for your joints, some people believed that it was just an old wives tale.
Cod liver oil is good for your overall health, it is not just for joint complaints.  It is the most reliable and concentrated source of the 4 nutrients  which are essential to human beings health; EPA, DHA, Vitamin A and Vitamin D.  It also helps to give you the following:

• Healthy skin
• Strong bones and teeth
• Healthy cardiovascular system
• Healthy nervous system and prevention of depression
• Healthy digestive tract

A Norwegian study of more than 68,000 women reported that female cancer patients who took cod liver oil supplements daily had significantly reduced mortality (25% for all cancers, 45% for lung cancer) compared to women who did not take such supplements.
 I have given Christine the following advice to help her gain more strength and joint mobility:

• Take a daily multivitamin- Vitabiotics Wellwoman Original, is what I have recommended. Please click on "New Year New Vitamins" to read my previous post on Wellwoman vitamins
• Join a yoga class that you enjoy and attend once or twice per week in order to build core muscles, improve joint mobility and overall wellbeing.
• After 8 weeks introduce some jogging into the routine, once or twice a week to begin with and then build this up to 3 times per week; this is a great way to get her heart pumping, burn calories, improve muscle tone and strength. Christine enjoys jogging but you can choose any aerobic activity that you enjoy.
• Take cod liver oil daily
• Drink more water. Christine was not drinking enough throughout the day, I have suggested that she aim for 6 glasses per day.
• Take regular breaks from staring at the computer, walk around the office at least once per hour.  Drinking more should mean that you visit the bathroom more often anyway.
• Take the stairs when you can instead of the lift and walk up the escalators, these are easy ways to get the legs in motion daily.

We will revisit Christine in 3 months to review how she is getting along with these suggestions.  All the best Christine!