Osteoarthritis - prevention and treatment 

Age can play a massive role in the health and function of our spine. The aging process in the spine is called degenerative joint disease and degenerative disc disease which involves the gradual loss of normal structure and function of the spine over time. As we age, our spine's ability to adapt and compensate for the stressors of our daily lives reduces.

The way we live our lives can have a massive impact on the progression and severity of the degeneration process. Those people that work hard their whole lives are morel likely to have a earlier onset degenerative findings in the spine, due to the repetitive physical stressors, postural stressors, and major axial loading through the spine (weight bearing). 

General spinal degeneration is something that happens to our whole spine as we age. This can be prevented/slowed with regular movement, with and without weightbearing. All forms of exercise are encouraged, although as we get older the likelihood and impact of injuries suggests we should avoid high-impact sports.

Specific spinal degeneration, at certain levels of your spine, can happen when we have repetitive injuries or injuries that go untreated. Injuries to the spine are more likely to happen at levels that have been previously injured, due to the initial injury not fully recovering. Injury upon injury can lead to spinal dysfunction which eventually degenerates. People don’t always feel a lot of pain with smaller injuries, but with subsequent injuries they eventually notice stiffness and related pain.

The most common areas for degeneration to occur are the lower cervical (neck) and lower lumbar spine, and can contribute to the presentation of a number of symptoms, including spinal deformity (curve changes, rotation, misalignments), reduction in motion, irritation of the facet joints causing pain, and interference with the nerve roots as they exit the spine.

The key to preventing degeneration is very similar for the best treatment for degeneration - the right amount of movement. Keep active throughout your life, exercise regularly, take every opportunity to get up and move, keep gardening, walk daily, etc, etc.

Chiropractors are the best health professional to see when you injure your spine, of course. However, chiropractors can play an important role in keeping your spine working at its best rather than just getting you up and running when you injure your neck or back again.