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All about Arthritis

Do you know what arthritis is? How to help manage symptoms? Where to go for help?


Leah from Arthritis Action joined us for a Carers Connect Special to talk about arthritis and the charity she works for which supports those affected.


Watch the presentation video below and check out the Q&A section and Arthritis Action useful resources below.




Q&A with Leah from Arthritis Action

What does Arthritis Action class as a young adult?

Arthritis Action has recently started working with young adults and this is generally gauged from around 18 to people in their 40s. Currently most of the young adults the charity works with are aged in their 30-40s, but this may be because young people are finding support elsewhere? See here fore more.

Can you get arthritis in your toes?

Yes, you can get arthritis anywhere in your body. Essentially it's a muscular skeletal condition.

I've been recommended Green Lipped Mussel as a supplement?

Arthritis Action's dietician Martin provides a lot of information on supplements. For the most part, many seem to work through the placebo effect (i.e. the benefit is related more to the person's belief in the treatment).


Some supplements may react to medication you are taking, so please check with a medical professional to ensure it is safe. As long as you are feeling well and have no adverse effects, taking supplements should generally be ok, but unfortunately no miracle cure has been discovered so far.

Does arthritis run in families?

The jury is out. Osteoarthritis is general associated with bone degeneration as we age, but there are some types of inflammatory arthritis where this may be the case, for example if a parent was a carrier, or for a certain autoimmune disease. In one of Arthritis Action's recent podcasts there is discussion about whether rheumatoid arthritis is hereditary. Link to podcasts here.

Is there anything on the website to help families of children who have arthritis?

Arthritis Action works with those 18 and above, but there are organisations such as NRAS which has a specific website for those affected by juvenile arthritis.

If you don't have arthritis but maybe have it in your family or just concerned, is there anything you can do to prevent or delay developing symptoms?

Like with any condition, eating well and keeping active is really important as this keeps your muscles strong and helps keep you to a healthy weight. Also, managing stress is important.


If you are concerned or start having pain or symptoms, do seek help. Many people leave it until quite late, but as soon as you feel you may be experiencing symptoms, keep a record of the type of pain, how long it last and, is it for example, worse in the mornings or at night, or after a certain activity? This helps form evidence. As well as generally maintaining a healthy lifestyle, it's really important to know your body and what is normal for you.

Are there any links for aids and adaptations, e.g. to use in the kitchen preparing food?

There is a factsheet on aids and adaptations. There is a also a great website run by occupational therapists called Complete Care Shop. It's really important to shop around as items may be quite expensive and it may be that you find something cheap which was not created to be a disability aid, but works just as well, e.g. using a colander or a sieve in a pan, so you just have to lift this instead of the whole pan full of boiling water, or putting foam around cutlery to form a grip.


You're welcome to give Arthritis Action a call as they have lots of ideas about help with cooking or dressing etc, but if symptoms are bad, please get a referral from your GP for an Occupational Therapist for advice.

Does long term exposure to cold exacerbate symptoms?

There is a study called Cloudy with a chance of pain which looked at this, and it would seem that those in colder wetter climates (like ours) do suffer more with arthritic symptoms. People do say that warmer climates have a positive impact of their joints.


To keep warm, there are lots of things which may help, for example:

  • using hot water bottles, warm baths, hydro-therapy pools

  • paraffin baths which you dip your hands, using hand warmers in your gloves

  • rubbing the joints, perhaps with a deep heat type rub which heats up the area

  • warm drinks

  • gloves or fingerless gloves


You're welcome to give Arthritis Action a call for advice.

Is diet important?

Overall health is important. So, eating a healthy well-balanced diet and portion size is more important than eliminating specific foods as the research doesn't really back this up. For hands and non-weight bearing body parts, there are exercises that you can do. Again, you are welcome to speak to one of us, including one-to-one advice with Martin (dietician) which is included in the membership.


Useful Arthritis Action resources

E news to keep up with developments and general info


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