5 Tips to Maintain Joint Health and Stay Active

As we age, our joints start to decline, resulting in discomfort, loss of flexibility, and decreased movement. But don’t despair, there are various ways you can approach your joint health to preserve their strength and remain active. In this blog, we’ll examine 5 tips for maintaining healthy joints.

1. Maintain a Healthy Weight

Carrying extra weight can cause additional pressure on your joints, resulting in discomfort and potential damage to the joints. Keeping a healthy weight helps lessen the burden on your joints, enhancing flexibility and lowering the likelihood of joint injuries.

2. Exercise regularly

Exercise strengthens the muscles, ligaments, and tendons surrounding the joints. Having well-developed muscles has a protective effect by decreasing the load on the cartilage. When the tissues are strong, they act like a brace and lessen the pressure to protect weakened joints. 

3. Stretching and Flexibility Exercises

Incorporating stretching and flexibility exercises into your daily routine can maintain the suppleness and mobility of your joints, minimizing the chances of experiencing joint stiffness and pain. Keeping your joints limber and mobile is possible by integrating stretching exercises into your daily regimen.

4. Improve Your Posture

Having poor posture can cause your joints to endure excessive strain, resulting in pain and stiffness. Improving your posture can help alleviate the pressure on your joints and enhance joint health.

5. Incorporate Joint-Supporting Nutrients Into Your Diet.

Supporting joint health can be achieved with the help of specific nutrients. Supplements can also aid in maintaining the strength of joints and tendons, in addition to following a nutritious diet.

Hyaluronic Acid

If you’ve ever seen an illustration of a knee joint, it is a fascinating structure. Much like a well-oiled machine, the bones, ligaments, and tendons in our knees or other joints work together to promote smooth functioning. One of the most important components of the knee is its cartilage. Cartilage helps cushion the knee against force and physical stress. Cartilage cells called chondrocytes produce collagen and hyaluronic acid that contributes to its firm, gel-like structure. Within the knee, the articular cartilage is surrounded by synovial fluid, which contains a high percentage of hyaluronic acid. This thick viscous fluid has a consistency similar to egg whites which provides smooth movement of the joints.

An advantage to taking supplements that contain hyaluronic acid is its two-fold effect on hyaluronic acid levels in your body. It not only provides additional hyaluronic acid for your body to use but suppresses the enzyme that breaks down hyaluronic acid.* Another benefit of hyaluronic acid supplements is that they can reduce levels of inflammatory metabolites that are sometimes produced as a byproduct of cartilage cell activity.*

Collagen - Your Joint's Foundation

Many became familiar with collagen when it was a popular ingredient used to plump lips in the 1980s and 1990s. But collagen is so much more than a cosmetic enhancement. Collagen is a type of protein that is made in our body. Nearly one-third of all protein found in the body is in the form of collagen protein. It is one of the main building block components of soft tissue, including ligaments, tendons, and cartilage. You’ll also find collagen protein within the lining of the digestive tract, skin layers, hair strands, blood vessels, and nails among others.

We start losing existing collagen and creating less collagen in our 20’s and this escalates as we get older. Lifestyle factors such as smoking, taking in too much sugar, or exposure to UV rays can make you lose collagen even faster. Taking in additional collagen helps replenish lost collagen stores and provides the raw building materials your body requires for healthy joints.

Chondroitin sulfate and MSM

Chondroitin sulfate and MSM (methylsulfonylmethane) supplements are used to promote enhanced mobility in individuals with stiff joints.* Inflammatory chemicals such as nitric oxide synthase and COX-2 (cyclooxygenase-2) are notorious for wreaking havoc on the joints and causing damage. Both chondroitin sulfate and MSM have antioxidant abilities that neutralize the substances. Another manner in which these nutrients support the joints is that they both contain sulfur molecules. Sulfur content decreases as joints age and become stiff. Sulfur is also required to produce collagen, which also supports the strength of joints.

Turmeric for Joint Mobility

Turmeric nourishes the joints by providing a healthy response to inflammation which can break down cartilage, leading to a variety of health issues. Studies show a connection between turmeric consumption and increased knee mobility.* Upping your intake of nutrients like curcumin can be useful in reducing oxidative stress that damages joints.*

One of the issues with collagen supplements is that not all are created equal. Collagen is a large molecule that makes it great for creating resilient structures in the body. However, the size can be difficult for the digestive system to absorb. A proper collagen supplement should contain collagen that is broken down into smaller fragments such as peptides or amino acids. 

Nature's Lab Gold Hyaluronic Acid with BioCell Collagen® & OptiMSM® is an example of this type of broken-down collagen. This formula provides multi-faceted benefits for the entire body.* An effective blend of Hydrolyzed Collagen Type II, Hyaluronic Acid, Chondroitin Sulfate, and OptiMSM® work to improve joint health and skin condition from the inside out.* 

Nature’s Lab Gold Turmeric + Joint Complex combines the top nutrients for joint health- BioCell Collagen® (containing hyaluronic acid, hydrolyzed collagen, and chondroitin sulfate), Curcumin C3 Complex® turmeric (standardized to 95% curcuminoids), and MSM (methylsulfonylmethane) into one bottle. This supplement also includes Bioperine® black pepper extract further to increase the absorption of turmeric and other ingredients.*