Get Easy Health Digest™ in your inbox and don’t miss a thing when you subscribe today. Plus, get the free bonus report, Mother Nature’s Tips, Tricks and Remedies for Cholesterol, Blood Pressure & Blood Sugar as my way of saying welcome to the community!
Why you should squat once a day
As we age, one of the first things many of us start to complain about are those “aches and pains.”
We’re just not as lithe and flexible as we once were. Reaching for that box on the top shelf might just cause us to strain something.
And, many of us will develop osteoarthritis.
Not to be confused with rheumatoid arthritis, which is an autoimmune disease (which, btw are on the rise in folks over 50), osteoarthritis is the wear and tear that happens when your joint cartilage wears away from overuse, obesity or just plain aging.
Your joints become achy and stiff. It may take a bit of time to stand perfectly straight in the morning. Bending over, climbing stairs, or grabbing things may be difficult and painful.
And squatting, well… that may be downright impossible!
But in some parts of the world, squatting is a daily habit for young and old alike. And, apparently, squatting may be one way to keep our joints healthy…
«SPONSORED»
Why don’t we squat anymore?
There are a few interesting reasons that squatting is generally looked upon as something only kids do when they’re digging in the dirt.
The first has to do with the evolution of our toileting habits. That’s right. Holes in the ground, outhouses, and even chamber pots, required us to squat. The development of seated toilets, along with the plumbing that empties them, has deprived us of our biggest opportunity to flex our squatting muscles.
The other reason is cultural. Can you imagine squatting in the three-piece suit at the office, or even in public? This presents a problem for our hip and knee joints since keeping them healthy is a case of “use it or lose it.”
Squatting lubricates your joints
Every joint in your body has synovial fluid. It’s the oil that keeps our cartilage lubricated. It also nourishes the cartilage on each end of the bone.
Movement and compression are the two things required to produce this fluid. So, when you don’t bend a joint, your body thinks you don’t need to produce as much fluid.
Nowadays, we seldom put our hips and knees through their full range of motion, never bending them past 90 degrees. So your body gets the wrong message: make less synovial fluid. Consequently, your joints become less lubricated… stiff… arthritic.
It’s unlikely that we’re going to become a culture full of squatters any time soon. But if you can make a practice of squatting on occasion — at least at home a couple of times a day.
You might find it improves several ills all at once. But if your knees and hips just can’t handle it, what else can you do to ensure your joints stay lubricated and flexible?
If your joints are already arthritic, you can receive injections to help with lubrication. Down the road, you’re looking at joint replacement.
Or … you can eat more oranges!
Vitamin C: A natural lubricant
Although it may be best known as an antidote for the common cold, ascorbic acid, or vitamin C, helps your body produce collagen, the protein found in all connective tissue.
In fact, one of the first signs of a vitamin C deficiency is chronic pain in the limbs and joints, as less collagen is produced, and elasticity decreases.
Research has shown the connection between vitamin C and joint health.
A 2011 study at the University of South Florida reported that people who took vitamin C supplements were 11% less likely to develop osteoarthritis than those who took no supplements.
And a recent study that looked at nearly 5,000 individuals found that insufficient vitamin C was related to back and neck pain, and to self-reported cases of rheumatism and limited mobility due to joint pain.
«SPONSORED»
Slow the damage
A 2019 research review from Central South University in China found that resveratrol can switch on a gene that may stop the progression of osteoarthritis — the most common cause of knee pain and problems.
The gene they studied is called sirtuin 1 (SIRT 1). It’s considered a longevity gene and it’s linked to a variety of age-related diseases, including osteoarthritis. SIRT 1 is present in cartilage cells. But factors that drive the development of osteoarthritis, like oxidative stress, nutritional stress and mechanical stress, inhibit SIRT 1’s expression.
In people with osteoarthritis, the level of SIRT 1 is directly connected to the severity of their disease. People with severely degenerated cartilage have less expression of this gene. And having less SIRT 1 leads to even more degeneration. It’s a vicious cycle. But resveratrol may be able to get that SIRT 1 flowing again…
Studies show that in mice with osteoarthritis, resveratrol is successfully able to slow the progression of the disease. And studies in people with osteoarthritis show resveratrol reduces pain, lowers inflammation biomarkers associated with disease, improves function and decreases symptoms overall.
Editor’s note: While you’re doing all the right things to protect your brain as you age, make sure you don’t make the mistake 38 million Americans do every day — by taking a drug that robs them of an essential brain nutrient! Click here to discover the truth about the Cholesterol Super-Brain!
Sources:
- The Forgotten Art Of Squatting Is A Revelation For Bodies Ruined By Sitting — Quartz
- 6 Vitamins For Flexibility – Bend Better — Rage Yoga
- 8 Symptoms of Vitamin C Deficiency — Fitday
- Top 3 Types of Arthritis — WebMD
- What is the function of synovial fluid in joints? — Sharecare
- Serum vitamin C and spinal pain: a nationwide study — Pain
- The effects of vitamin C supplementation on incident and progressive knee osteoarthritis: a longitudinal study — Public Health Nutrition
- 16 Foods High in Vitamin C — Global Healing Center
By Joyce Hollman
«SPONSORED»
