How Excess Weight Affects Your Hip Joints

Being overweight just puts such a heavy burden on your body, especially in the hip joints.

While there can be more than one reason behind problems with the hip joints, did you know that the number one reason for hip joint problems is being overweight? The force of the pressure on the joint doesn’t just give you pain and discomfort. Without getting the pressure of the excess weight off your hip joints, it can lead to needing a hip replacement.

Like the other joints in your body, your hip joints are meant to allow you to walk with ease and handle movements in a painless manner. They’re the reason that you can get from one place to the next, the reason you can drive a car or dance with a loved one. When something gets out of whack with your hip joints, it can rob you of an active life.

Your joints consist of cartilage, ligaments and muscle – and all three work together in order for you to be able to move. Being overweight can damage any one of the components that make up your hip joints and when damage occurs, every component in your hip then pays the price.

It can restrict movement (and in some cases prevent it altogether) and all of this is caused just by having too much weight. There are also certain conditions that can be brought on that will damage your hip joints and these conditions are brought on directly as a result of excess weight.

You might not be aware that osteoarthritis, which can lead to the need for hip replacement, is brought about by additional weight as one cause. Whatís really bad about this condition is that it wonít just hit one hip joint, but both – and being overweight greatly increases your odds of developing this condition.

Carrying around more weight than is healthy for your body can also cause you to develop inflammation in the joints. Coupled with chronic pain and limits in your mobility, you might end up needing surgery – and surgery for those who are overweight is always more risky.

By losing weight, you can lower your odds of needing surgery for hip joint replacement.

When you take off the extra pounds on your body, you’ll often see immediate results. Losing weight makes you look better and feel better. You’ll be able to breathe easier, walk easier and even have improved sleep function.