i have severe osteoarthtitis in my hands, what is the best option to ease the pain?

There is nothing that you can do to completely prevent osteoarthritis but there are lots of things that you can do to reduce your risk of developing osteoarthritis and to reduce pain and improve function if you already have osteoarthritis.

• Try to keep to a healthy weight – For every pound that you are above a healthy weight, an extra 4 or 5 pounds of weight goes through your hips knees and feet and this can increase the pain. Reducing weight can help a lot with pain.

• Keep your muscles strong and do some exercise – Exercise that increases muscle strength can really help support the joints and reduce the pain of osteoarthritis. Exercise can also help your joints because it can help with weight loss, improve posture and flexibility and reduce stress. You should try to balance active (aerobic) exercise with increasing strength (resistance) exercise plus work on flexibility (stretching) to get the best results.

• Keep to a healthy diet – Eating healthily can help maintain muscle and bone strength and help you keep to a healthy weight.

• Self-management – Self-management is about taking control of your symptoms and lifestyle in order to live a better life with less pain and improved function.