Getting to know arthritis

The term arthritis is an umbrella term for over 100 different rheumatic conditions that affect the joints, the word arthritis literally means joint inflammation. These diseases affects the movements that your body makes and on which you rely for your everyday activities and it is usually a chronic condition which means that the condition can last on and off for a lifetime. There are more than 100 different kinds of arthritis that can affect the many different areas of the body. The condition is not only a condition that affects the joints some forms of arthritis can affect other tissues and organs of the body.

Most common arthritic conditions

Most often when you think about arthritis you think about it as an “old age” disease however it does not matter what your age is, you can be a child, young adult or an elderly person, arthritis can affect a person of any age.

The reason that many people see arthritis as an “old age” disease is that one of the most common conditions is the “wear and tear” degenerative condition known as Osteoarthritis and is most often seen in people over the age of 60. Osteoarthritis is a condition that affects the cartilage that covers the end of bones, With these cartilages degenerating it results in pain as well as difficulty of moving as the bones start to rub against one another.

Another common arthritis condition is Rheumatoid arthritis which can be a severely disabling and disfiguring condition that affects mainly women. Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease which causes the body's immune system to become hyperactive which then attacks and inflames the joint lining resulting in pain and difficulty of movement.

Gout is a metabolic condition that generally affects men and usually small joints such as the big toe and ankle are attacked which can be extremely painful. Juvenile arthritis is an umbrella term that refers to all arthritis that occurs in children. This term generally refers to all arthritis conditions except osteoarthritis which is the degenerating and wear and tear of joints in older people.

Leading contributors to arthritis

It has been estimated that there are over 200 factors that contribute towards arthritis but the following list is a list of the leading factors:

• Smoking:
  It has been proven that smoking, even 6 cigarettes a day, increases your risk of Rheumatoid arthritis by as much as 1500%.
• Obesity:
  This is a major cause of osteoarthritis in hips and hands of people who are over 60 and overweight.
• Stress:
  Just as many other diseases stress is a major trigger in initiating a flare-up.

With the Goji berry that is find in China you can reduce many of the factors that contribute to arthritis as well as control the effects of arthritis. In studies using the Goji berry is has been found that the Goji berry has many medicinal properties and that it can help with significantly reducing a person weight as well as helping you to handle stress by creating a good feeling attitude. The Goji berry has also been found to stabilize an immune system whether you have low immune function or a hyperactive immune function the Goji berry can assist in normalizing you immune function which is an important part of fighting inflammation. A study has proven that the ingestion of Goji berries can increase the body's production of the most powerful anti-inflammatory enzyme.

With Goji berries you can control the risks factors leading to arthritis as well as control the effects of arthritis. To find out more about the medicinal properties of the Goji berry and to see with which other conditions the berry can assist feel free to browse the website and read more about the Goji berry products.