Arthritic pain can flare up in your knees if you are over the age of 50. If you have osteoarthritis in your knees, you may be tempted not to exercise. However, it is very important to encourage a range of movement, so that your knees do not completely stiffen and seize up. Painful symptoms may be keeping you immobile and this can significantly affect the quality of your life.

Treatments for arthritis vary, but by far the most common is to take medication. Pain-killing drugs can give you some relief from symptoms by blocking pain receptors in your body. But they wear off and then you must take some more. At this point, your options may seem few and recovery an impossibility.

So here is some good news for you from a recent Canadian study: people who have knee osteoarthritis are successfully treating their condition at home. Researchers at the University of Western Ontario found that older people with knee pain who learn that the cause is arthritis generally do the right things to treat it, without consulting a doctor or pharmacist.

The study looked at mostly overweight women with an average age of 63 and who had osteoarthritis of the knee. The researchers found that the participants, for the most part, opted to treat themselves by losing weight, getting exercise, and eating a healthy diet. The researchers noted that the patients did the right things, and their quality of life improved significantly as a result. They concluded that, within six months of receiving a diagnosis of knee osteoarthritis, the study participants made a few lifestyle interventions, often without the advice of a health professional, and saw improvements in their pain and function.

Ideally, the researchers recommend that, if you are over the age of 50 and experience knee pain, you should talk to your health-care provider and get some help. A physiotherapist can set you on the right path as far as therapeutic exercises go. And a dietician can make some helpful suggestions for losing weight and improving your diet.