The Charlton Centre

We often hear of the many great impacts maintaining a health weight can have on our health. Losing weight has always been known as a benefit for our joints, especially people with osteoarthritis. At the recent American College of Rheumatology Conference, a study was presented looking at the impact of weight loss on rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune disease.

It was found that for people who have a BMI (body mass index) over 25, that a weight loss of 5 kg resulted in a 42% improvement in their level of overall disease activity compared to an improvement of only 19% in those who did not lose weight. Both groups were on similar treatments. Even a 1kg loss of body weight showed improvement in lowering disease activity as excess fat is known to produce several inflammatory chemicals in the body.

Our pharmacist, Carolyn Whiskin, recently returned from The American College of Rheumatology Conference, the largest international meeting held for rheumatology. Over 15,000 health professionals from around the world specializing in research and the care of people with arthritis were in attendance. Today’s blog post is one several to come with information Carolyn learned at the Conference.