Arthritis is a global concern that, on a regular basis, impacts the professional and personal lives of a significant number of individuals. The purpose of this week’s new Synutra Pure Blog is to support and assist in raising awareness for this issue during Arthritis Awareness Month! We will be discussing arthritis statistics, utilizing United States based information as a sample thanks to the publicly available information available through the CDC’s research, along with the CDC’s recommendations for arthritis-appropriate intervention, and what the CDC is actually doing to promote health. So let’s get started!
We will begin by addressing some national arthritis statistics that paint a solid picture of the situation. Around 53.2 million US adults, 21.2% of US adults, have been diagnosed with a form of arthritis, be it osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gout, lupus, or fibromyalgia.1 Interestingly, the prevalence of arthritis varies on a state by state basis and even a county by county basis.1 For instance, arthritis prevalence ranges from 19.3% in Hawaii to 34.2% in West Virginia.1 On a county by county basis, prevalence ranges from 11.2% to 42.7%. Arthritis occurs on a large scale, but not uniformly. With this data it is also worth acknowledging that the CDC keeps a close eye on the forecasted future arthritis burden of the US.
Now, we’ve discussed how many people are impacted by arthritis but what do those numbers look like when further broken down? By age, 5% of adults aged 18-44 have reported doctor diagnosed arthritis, 26% aged 45-64 have reported doctor diagnosed arthritis, and 47% of adults over 65 have reported doctor diagnosed arthritis.1 While there are occurrences of arthritis reported at younger ages, the vast majority of reports are made by people later in life. Also worth noting, there is a higher prevalence of arthritis reported by women than men, 24.2% in women and 17.9% in men.1
The final statistics we want to cover before moving on to our “what can be done” section is how arthritis impacts people via disability and limitations. Rheumatic conditions, including arthritis, are the leading cause of disability in the United States.1 Among arthritis patients, at least 1 in 3 have work limitations imposed by their condition.1 Additionally, arthritis based activity limitations affect a significant portion of US adults, with 43.9% of arthritis diagnosed adults reporting activity limits based around their condition. So to cover some final numbers, 1 in 5 US adults are battling arthritis that has been reported, 1 in 4 adults with arthritis report severe joint pain, 1 in 10 adults with arthritis report activity limitations related to the condition, and the annual cost of arthritis of arthritis medical spending and reported lost wages comes out to 303.5 billion dollars.2 So it's not just a medical issue, but a financial one as well.
At this point, we’re done throwing numbers around. There are plenty more statistics available, and if you are interested in further reading we would like to encourage you to check out our references below to visit the CDC’s pages yourself and learn more! What we want to move on to now are the interesting steps the CDC is recommending to help reduce the arthritis burden, a program they commonly refer to as “promoting interventions that reduce arthritis pain.”
When the CDC uses terms like intervention what they mean is quickly identifying who may be affected, then helping those identified receive treatment. The first such treatment recommendation is participating in a self-management education program.2 The idea is to teach and communicate skills and ideas that can help an arthritis patient live well and comfortably. While there is no arthritis cure, there are techniques and options for management that can make things more bearable and step one is to learn these things.
The next CDC recognized approach to arthritis intervention is being active by participating in physical activity. Walking, biking, swimming, and yoga are all amazing low impact exercise options for arthritis patients to consider. Activity is proven to reduce arthritis pain with time and improve mood, function, and general quality of life.2 The current recommendation is that adults should aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity per week.2 If you can’t reach that goal immediately, that is perfectly fine. Any activity is better than none, and by making a concerted effort you can build up to the 150 minute/week goal.
Weight control is the next key piece of the puzzle. Maintaining a healthy weight is important for not just arthritis health, but also for general health. It can be a very two-birds-one-stone situation when you begin to put effort into weight management. Reducing weight is a key factor in reducing knee osteoarthritis risk, and in reducing pain if you are already impacted by it.2 The neat thing is, maintaining a healthy weight is something that is impacted by participation in physical activity. One can help the other, which makes each one easier in the long run!
Protecting the joints is also on the CDC list of recognized interventions. What this means is limiting things that may negatively impact joint health like high-impact exercise along the lines of running.2 As we deal with arthritis, accommodations need to be made. Things like switching from high intensity sports to more joint friendly activities are a great method for preventing further joint damage while still getting the exercise and activity we need.
The last item on the list is communicating with your doctor about your condition.2 Open and honest communication with your medical professional is a cornerstone of most interactions concerning your health. The earlier a doctor has enough info to diagnose something, the better they can treat the issue.2 Luckily, we live in an era where it has never been easier to get in contact with our doctors, sometimes without ever needing to leave the comfort of our own homes. Beyond in-office visits, telehealth calls have changed the landscape of medical care for the better. Recommendations from physicians can improve attitude and motivate individuals to do more for their well-being, and being able to communicate more readily helps facilitate this.
At this point you may be wondering about what the CDC is actually doing to battle arthritis, other than writing down some recommendations and statistics people may or may not see. The easy answer: a lot. But let's expand on that! The CDC funds a plethora of national and state organizations built around the implementation of 18 different self-management and physical activity based programs designed to assist adults in the management of arthritis symptoms. These programs are also designed in such a way that they can support the health of patients trying to manage other conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease.3 Some of these programs are even designed to support Spanish speaking adults with English as a second language, or even extremely limited English!
The CDC works diligently with state and national groups to make sure programs are available in all 50 states. 13 different state organizations currently receive funding that support programs designed to support and enhance the quality of life of arthritis patients.3 Additionally, the CDC provides funding for states to increase the efficacy of programs like the following:
-Increase health care providers’ patient counseling about the benefits of physical activity for reducing arthritis pain and limitations.
-Increase provider referrals of patients with arthritis to evidence-based interventions.
-Promote walking to increase physical activity and manage arthritis symptoms.
-Raise awareness of the burden of arthritis and ways to manage it.
The CDC does what it can, but it cannot be solely responsible for raising arthritis awareness and for raising visibility of the burdens of arthritis. Nor should it be. If you are an arthritis patient, or are close to an arthritis patient, or are just reading this for fun, there are things you can do to help spread awareness of these issues. Tell your friends, tell your families. Explain the difficulties of your situation when you feel comfortable doing so and help others to understand what you are going through. In the same way that we are a small company that devotes some of our blog and media presence to promoting awareness of these issues, you can do the same. Spend May talking about the issue, make public posts addressing the problem if that is something you feel comfortable doing. Or even just talk to a family member or a friend in a way that lets them know you are trying to understand and support them in their burden. If you are trying to do more, the Arthritis Foundation can be a wonderful organization to offer charitable support in an effort to support the fight against arthritis.
As our readers and viewers know, arthritis is a topic that is near and dear to us here at Synutra Pure. Most of our content is centered around the topic, but this time every year we especially feel it is part of our duty to help raise awareness for these issues as best we can. We hope you find this information useful in your quest for knowledge!
As always, this information is not intended to diagnose or treat any illness or disease. No information in any of our blogs should ever be used as a substitute for medical advice from your doctor or another qualified medical professional.
References
1) “Arthritis-Related Statistics” Oct. 4th, 2023
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
https://www.cdc.gov/arthritis/data_statistics/arthritis-related-stats.htm
2) “Arthritis” Oct. 5th, 2023
CDC, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP)
https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/factsheets/arthritis.htm
3) “Arthritis Awareness Month; Expanding Interventions for Arthritis” May 3rd, 2022
Centers for Disease COntrol and Prevention (CDC)
https://www.cdc.gov/arthritis/communications/features/arthritis-awareness.html
