Do you need to put up with knee pains? A recent study shows that losing at least 10 percent of your current weight may help reduce the knee pain of people suffering from knee osteo-arthritis.
Stepher Messier, lead author of the study and a professor of health and exercise science at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C., and his colleagues was wondering if losing weight may help improve the quality of life of patients who feel devastated about the pain that makes them lose the ability to move around freely.
The researchers recruited 454 overweight adults diagnosed with knee osteo-arthritis. These are patients who suffer from knee pain almost every day of the week. Their ages range from 55 above and were considered inactive in general. They were divided into three groups: a diet with exercise, a diet only plan and an exercise only plan.
During the 18-month monitoring period, the participants were asked to exercise for one hour a day. Work out composed of less strenuous activities like walking and muscle work outs. The females who were on the diet plan had a balanced and calorie-limited diet, with around 1,100 calories per day while the males had no less than 1,200 calories per day. All diet plans were personalized.
After 18 months, the researchers evaluated the participants to measure improvement. The diet with exercise group lost 23 lbs. on average or 11 percent from their previous weight; the diet only group lost 19.6 lbs. or 9.5 percent of their previous weight; while the exercise only shed 4 lbs. or two percent of their original weight.
Those who were under the diet with exercise plan reported less knee pain and showed improved mobility than the other groups. The knee pain was reduced by up to 51 percent compared to the exercise only group who had 25 percent and 28 percent for the diet only group. All groups had improved speed in walking.
The study was published in the Sept. 24 issue of the online journal JAMA.
