Dealing with hip or knee pain? Here’s a surprising new way to stop it: By dancing.
According to a new Saint Louis University study, older adults who danced regularly reported feeling less joint pain compared to those who did not dance.
Better yet, a daily jig caused them to reduce their pain medication use by nearly 40 percent.
“After dancing, over several months they reported less pain and were able to walk faster,” says Jena Krampe, Ph.D., an assistant professor of nursing at Saint Louis University, who authored the study. “Walking just a little more rapidly can make enough of a difference for a person to get across the street more quickly or get to the bathroom faster, which keeps them functional and independent. In our study, those who danced didn’t walk dramatically faster, but they had a meaningful change in their walking speed.”
Krampe, who acts as a professor in Saint Louis University’s School of Nursing, conducted a 12 week study with 34 older adults to see how dancing affected joint pain caused by age-related arthritis. Dividing them into two groups, she had one group dance for 45 minutes two times a week, whereas the other group engaged in other physical activities but did not dance. The dancing they engaged in, according to Krampe, was slow and rhythmic–perfect for those with weaker joints.
By the end of the study, Krampe found that those who danced regularly had less pain in their hips and knees. Better yet, it reduced their use of pain medicine by 39 percent–those who simply exercised only reduced their use by 21 percent.
This, to Krampe, is encouraging news.
“Those in the dance group talked about how much they loved it,” says Krampe. “This is not surprising because those in our study are from a generation that loved dancing. Dance-based therapy for older adults needs to be gentle, slow and include options so it can be performed standing or sitting because their fatigue or pain level can change day to day.”
The dance used in the study, called Healthy-Steps, is a low-impact aerobic activity developed by a dancer specifically to help those dealing with physical limitations due to injuries or long term illnesses. Together, the exercises help improve flexibility and strength for those whose strength may be compromised, and can be done seated or standing. In turn, Krampe suggests that anyone dealing with joint pain should find exercise options that help improve strength and flexibility while being slow and easy to learn.
What You Should Do
If you’re experiencing hip or joint pain due to arthritis, consider making dancing a part of your treatment regimen. Used in addition with other arthritis therapies, it could help improve your mobility and reduce joint pain, allowing you more freedom to enjoy your life.
Readers: What exercises do you like to do to improve your flexibility?
Sources:
Study: Senior Citizens Who Dance Have Less Hip and Joint Pain – ScienceDaily.com
How Dancing May Ward off Hip and Joint Pain Caused by Age-Related Arthritis – DOI.org
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