Christopher Edwards, lead expert at Penn State College of Medicine, said, “In a study of obese patients with early arthritis, those who underwent cosmetic bariatric surgery and lost an average of 57 pounds in the early six months were able to effectively relieve knee pain, joint mobility and physical function. There was also an improvement in quality of life, daily routines and activity patterns. All of this without taking other joint treatment measures.” Many people believe that osteoarthritis is simply inflammation of the joints, so they just need to protect them. They don’t realize the impact that whole-body changes can have on the joints. According to statistics, more than a quarter of people with osteoarthritis in China have obesity problems. This shows that weight is also an important indicator for joint health. Osteoarthritis is a common, slowly progressive degenerative joint disease. As many people believe, there is a close relationship between the onset of osteoarthritis and age. This is because people become progressively less able to coordinate nerve and muscle activity after middle age as nerve activity decreases, muscle function decreases, and the ability to coordinate nerve and muscle activity decreases. These changes make the biomechanics of joint activity change, resulting in overuse of the joints and surrounding structures, which can easily cause joint damage. In addition, women around the time of menopause are also prone to osteoarthritis, which may be related to sex hormone imbalance. However, there is another cause of arthritis that is not well known to the public, and that is obesity. Obesity increases the burden on the joint surfaces and changes the body’s posture, gait and movement patterns. This in turn accelerates the wear and tear and aging of joint structures, and can indirectly affect the joints through other metabolic complications. Therefore, most obese people are more prone to osteoarthritis of the knee, spine and foot joints. So, can we reduce the burden on the joints by reducing the pressure on the body? Some studies have shown that people with osteoarthritis who lose 10% of their own body weight experience moderate or even higher levels of improvement in their behavior. Therefore, proper healthy weight loss can alleviate symptoms such as pain and limb disorders caused by arthritis, and also have a positive effect on healing arthritis. In addition to weight loss to relieve arthritis pain, there are many other ways to treat osteoarthritis. Patients can choose according to their condition. For patients who do not need or do not want to undergo surgical treatment, pain relief is usually provided by a combination of treatments. One of the most important things that should be taken into account is functional exercise, which is often overlooked by the public, because targeted coordinated movement and muscle strengthening of the muscles around the joint can enhance joint stability, reduce joint pain, and maintain or increase the range of motion of the joint. However, it is important to note that functional exercises are best performed under the supervision of a medical professional and rehabilitation therapist to avoid aggravating pain or ineffective exercises. In addition, tui na, acupuncture and small acupuncture treatments around the diseased joint can also help to reduce pain and increase joint flexibility. Of course, the best way to avoid all of this is to actively prevent arthritis from occurring. The first thing to do is to maintain good posture, restore muscle and ligament compliance around the joints, correct adverse joint stress, and avoid mechanical injury, such as using canes, knee pads, wedge insoles, or other aids to reduce the load on the affected joints when walking; the second thing to do is to walk a moderate amount each day within the limits of tolerance, but avoid strenuous physical activities such as running and ball games. Finally, it is important to keep the joints warm.