Year 10 Science- Arthritis

During the past couple of lessons that we had for science, we  have been learning all about the body and medical sciences. We've learnt about the bones and which ones are where in the body and where  they are located, the muscles and the joints in the body and now we are learning about arthritis.

Arthritis comes from the Greek Arthro meaning joint and itis meaning inflammation 

In case you didn't know, arthritis is a condition that affects the joints in the body. It's where the cartilage- that's the stuff in between your bones where two of them meet- wears away and your bones are just rubbing against one another. Any one of the joints in you body can get arthritis and it will then get really really painful and inflamed.Anyone of any age can develop arthritis and that includes children. The chances of developing any form of arthritis get higher as you get older, but almost 3 out of 5 people that suffer from arthritis are under the age of 65.


There are literally hundreds of  forms of arthritis, but the most common ones that I'm going to be focusing on are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Let's start with Osteoarthritis.

It occurs when the cartilage- that the stuff that stop your bones from rubbing against one another- disappears and the bones rub against one another. As well as the contjoints, inual wear-and-tear of the joints, OA has been linked to multiple factors. these are some of them.

FRACTURES AND INFECTIONS

Fractures and infections can harm the internal tissues of the joints. People who have experienced repeated knee injuries- rugby players, football players, basketballers- are much more likely to get OA as they get older than someone who hasn't experienced knee injuries

OVERUSE OF THE JOINTS

People who overuse their joints-this could be by doing the same activity over and over again- can damage their joints. Construction workers, jackhammers, can get OA in their hands and their wrists as they have to hold the jackhammer all day and they do it often.  It's the same as ballet dancers but instead of their hands and wrists its their feet.

LACK OF EXERCISE

This may sound weird but it's true. A lack of exercise is as harmful as overuse. No exercise can lead to the muscles becoming weak and not being able to support the joints and can decrease joint flexibility. This means that an under used joint can become stiff and painful.

BEING OVERWEIGHT 

Bones/ joints can be strained from the excess weight. Being overweight makes an increase risk of having bad hips and knees as the hips and knees support most of the weight. Since the weight is mostly on those 2 joints, they are the first to show injury.

Now, for you viewing pleasure, some disgusting pictures of arthritis. Please don't look at these if you are eating and if you happen to have a problem with these, take it up with Mr. Heath. After all, it was his idea.