Whether it is arthritis or the result of an injury, joint pain can be a tough thing to live with. While there are multiple ways to cure and treat it, not all of them work for every person, and some can even end up backfiring if handled incorrectly.

You can always supplement your artificial recovery options, such as surgery or medication, with natural techniques that boost your body’s recovery speed or eliminate some of the pressure and pain you may be feeling. All of these are completely safe and can be a useful addition to your schedule if you still have not fully recovered from your joint pain yet.

Eating Well

Sticking to a healthy diet is far more important than you might expect. Not only can healthy foods have a good overall impact on your body, but they can actively help reduce inflammation in some cases, combating joint pain and helping you stay comfortable for much longer. A good diet leads to good health in more ways than you might expect.

Foods like fruits and vegetables are a great starting point, but you can also benefit from fatty fish, lentils, nuts, seeds, whole grains, and various other nice food items. Whether they are eaten on their own or used as ingredients in other things (like ginger and turmeric), they can reduce how much pain you end up suffering in the short term.

On the other hand, foods like deep-fried treats and baked goods (as well as many processed foods and red meat) are known to actually agitate your muscle pain and make recovery harder. Eating well is the easiest way to prevent your pain from escalating.

Remember that eating well is something you can do alongside any other recovery methods. It might not make a huge difference on its own, but when combined with physical therapy and weight loss, it can dramatically improve your overall comfort and recovery rate.

Aim to Lose Weight

There are many obvious benefits to losing weight, but many people do not realize that muscle and joint pain becomes worse as you get heavier. By losing weight, you take pressure off your joints, reducing the overall pain that a related injury will cause.

While this might not sound like a huge change, it can actually make a big difference. Being overweight has a high chance of causing joint pain through arthritis, but even if that does not happen, your higher weight puts more strain on all of your joints. The heavier you are, the more your joints need to support.

By losing weight, you take pressure off these joints and give yourself a better level of mobility, which can matter a lot if your joint pain is already making it harder to move. Losing weight, even in small amounts, can have such a huge impact that many doctors recommend it for any kind of joint pain at all.

Use Hot and Cold Compresses

A hot compress and a cold compress can be very useful in different situations, but they are both very valuable tools for dealing with joint pain as a whole. Temperature therapy is an effective way of staving off pain without actually using any medication or artificial means to alter your body directly.

A cold compress is great for fighting off swelling and pain, something that can be quite common after an injury. If you have joint pains, especially on your back, then a cold compress can lead to major improvements in terms of your overall comfort and recovery rate.

A hot compress, by contrast, is mainly ideal for helping to treat stiff muscles and spasms. These are both very common if you have joint pains and can ease your body if you are struggling to move consistently due to constant pains and aches.

Since compresses are so easy to apply, they can be used alongside almost any other recovery method. Keeping compresses as an available option to use them can give you a quick source of relief if your pain suddenly flares up or your body starts to hurt quite badly, and they will stave off the aching for a while.

Use Physical Therapy

Always turn to physical therapy whenever you can. It is one of the most effective ways of dealing with joint pain, whether that pain comes from another injury or from a condition like arthritis. There are countless ways to structure a physical therapy routine, and all of them are tailored toward each patient.

Whether you follow a set workout or create your own, you can use a combination of stretches, motions, exercises, and walking habits to try and help your body heal, all without pushing it over the limits of what it can manage. Strengthening the muscles around a sore joint removes a lot of the pressure, reducing the pain by a considerable amount.

Physical therapy can become a hand-crafted program that works specifically based on your interests, needs, and physical limits. Rather than following a generic workout that might not actually benefit you, you could talk to a specialist to figure out a plan that will actively help your body through every step you take.

There are very few situations where physical therapy is not an option, and you can even handle the entire process yourself if you want. However, it is always best to contact an expert, somebody that can craft the perfect therapy routine for your body.

Speak with an Orthopedic Specialist Today

Are you suffering from a recent injury? Make an appointment with one of our orthopedic specialists today to start your healing journey. OrthoArizona has nearly two dozen offices throughout the Valley, each focused on quality care, compassion, and excellent customer service. Since 1994, OrthoArizona has been dedicated to compassionate care of the highest quality.

The advice and information contained in this article are for educational purposes only and are not intended to replace or counter a physician’s advice or judgment. Please always consult your physician before taking any advice learned here or other educational medical material.