Majority of the people who suffer from some kind of pain think of pain killers as innocent little pills. You suffer from a headache or a toothache, you pop one and if you suffer from arthritis, you continue taking them all the time. However, you should be aware that those bottles which apparently look innocent may pose as a serious health risk in the long run. Nowadays, NSAIDs or the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are present in almost everyone’s medicine box. They know them by their names, ibuprofen, naproxen, acetaminophen, aspirin and paracetamol. If you knew that such NSAIDs are highly responsible for 20% of hospital admissions among people with heart failure.

Now arthritis is a painful and degenerative health condition which is marked by pain in the joints, stiffness and inflammation. How would you live with such a chronic disease minimizing the intake of painkillers? Check out some ways.

Lose weight:

Remember that your weight can be a vital factor in increasing the pain which you experience from arthritis. When there’s extra weight, it puts more pressure on your joints, like hips, knees and feet. Hence, you can look for a weight loss regime to reduce the stress on your joints and thereby reduce the pain altogether. Weight loss even prevents damage to your joints in the future.

Apply cold and hot therapy:

When it comes to pain of arthritis, simple cold and hot treatments can make a huge difference. If you can take long and warm showers in the morning, you can immediately notice a reduction of stiffness within your joints. You may even use an electric blanket or a heating pad to loosen your joints at night. Treating your joints with cold water is best for relieving pain. Wrap a gel ice pack and put it on painful joints.

Exercise more:

Exercising has more benefits than just helping you lose weight. When you move your joints regularly, they remain flexible. However, running and walking and some other sorts of weight-bearing exercises can be damaging enough for you. Instead of such heavy exercises, you can try some low impact ones like swimming or aerobics to keep moving your joints without taking much stress.

Acupuncture can help:

Have you heard of this Chinese medical therapy called acupuncture? This involves the insertion of thin needles within particular joints of your body. Experts say that this insertion re-routes energies and restores balance within your body. It is said that acupuncture has enough capability to reduce arthritis pain and in case you’re interested in this treatment, make sure you consult an experienced acupuncturist.

Take medicines to reduce pain:

If none of the above mentioned options work (which is pretty unnatural), you may take prescribed medications. You may derive benefit from painkillers but make sure you don’t take them for a long time as that would hurt your overall health in the long run.

Hence, if you’re suffering from chronic diseases like arthritis, don’t lose hope! Be strong, practice meditation and try to remain positive despite all the pain and grief that your body gives you.