January Meeting at Ocean

Diane JanTausch welcomed us and wished us all a Happy New Year. She introduced our guest speaker, Lauren Peters, who is the Fitness Coordinator at Life Fit in Point Pleasant. Lauren is certified by the Arthritis Foundation as an instructor and leader. Among her many classes are Tai Chi and aquatic classes. She is now back in school to get her R.N.

The two most common forms of arthritis are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Osteoarthritis is the breaking down of the cartilage at the joints, eventually causing bone to rub on bone. It may occur randomly anywhere in the body. It is manageable but not curable. Most common areas affected are hips, knees, hands, ankles, feet and lower back.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disease of the joints. The body’s immune system, which protects us from infection, mistakenly attacks the synovium - a membrane that lines the joints - causing deformity of the joints. This disease is bilateral - meaning that if it’s in one hand, it will be in the other too. Rheumatoid arthritis can be diagnosed through a blood test

Did you know? There are over 100 forms of arthritis and related diseases. They include lupus, fibromyalgia, osteoporosis, gout, bursitis, Raynaud’s phenomenon, and psoriasis. Raynaud’s phenomenon is caused by a circulation blockage and is commonly found in the hands and feet. Fibromyalgia is very difficult to diagnose - often only by touching and feeling pain in specific pressure points. It can be treated but is not curable. Juvenile arthritis is beginning to show up in very young children and seems to be occurring more frequently.

Exercise is very beneficial in helping to ease the pain caused by many types of arthritis as it improves circulation around the joints. In planning an exercise program consider the following:

• Talk to your physician.
• Consult a professional - a therapist or fitness center. They will help you set goals and devise a safe program.
• Start out slow, gradually increasing intensity.
• Make it fun - we tend to stick with a program doing activities that we enjoy rather than as a chore.

Some benefits of exercise:

• reduces stiffness and pain
• builds stronger muscle
• increases flexibility and range of motion
• increases muscle endurance
• helps sleep and efficiency
• helps control weight
• helps decrease depression
• helps reduce inflammation
• helps prevent other chronic diseases such as heart disease.

Some choices of exercise program:

• Aquatic exercises - have been found to be very beneficial.
• Water walking - helps stability and balance.
• Flexibility training - stretching first thing in the morning helps get circulation going around the joints.
• Gentle fitness - some classes are done with the aid of a chair.
• Yoga - all classes are not the difficult moves you normally envision. Some include the use of a chair for balance. Helps breathing and relaxation.
• Tai Chi - involves very slow movements. Some describe it as meditation in motion. Some classes combine using a chair with some standing work. The very slow movements help to slow your breathing and increase relaxation.

You can join a water exercise class at Life Fit in Point Pleasant. The Arthritis Foundation class involves a fee.

This was certainly an extremely informative presentation. Lauren was well prepared to answer all our questions during the Q and A period at the end of the meeting. There were many comments after the meeting about Lauren’s presentation and all the information we heard. Personally I learned more about arthritis in that hour than I had gathered all my life - an exceptional meeting.

Thank you Lauren for your excellent presentation - very professional and extremely informative.