Arthritis is a disease that causes damage to the joints of the body. There are more than 100 different forms of arthritis but the most common is osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint disease.

Osteoarthritis results when the cartilage of one or more joints breaks down and is lost. This leaves the joint with no cushion or lubrication and the exposed surfaces of the bones simply to grind against each another. Osteoarthritis afflicts over 20 million Americans and countless more around the globe. There is no known cause for this disease, but since it occurs primarily in older people, I submit to you that it is caused by the wear and tear of living one's life. This type of osteoarthritis, for which there is no known cause, is referred to in the medical world as primary osteoarthritis.

Primary osteoarthritis occurs most often in the hands, feet, spine, hip joints and knee joints. It is an equal opportunity disease affecting all races proportionately.

When the cause of the osteoarthritis is known, it is called secondary osteoarthritis. Some common causes of secondary osteoarthritis include obesity, trauma, congenital abnormalities, surgery, gout, diabetes and other hormonal disorders.

Since the cause of osteoarthritis is, by definition, unknown, we will turn our attention to secondary osteoarthritis and see what we can learn about prevention.

Obviously, we cannot prevent congenital abnormalities, avoid needed surgery, or escape all traumas. That leaves us to focus on obesity, gout, and diabetes.

We'll begin with gout, which occurs when uric acid crystals are deposited in joints, tendons and surrounding tissues. The best preventive measures are avoiding obesity, reducing the intake of meat and seafood, limiting alcohol and fructose consumption, and getting plenty of vitamin C. Recent studies show a low calorie diet is helpful and so is coffee and dairy consumption.

Obesity, another leading culprit in secondary osteoarthritis, is preventable in most cases. Proper diet and regular exercise will keep those extra pounds at bay.

Diabetes, at least Type 2 diabetes, can be prevented to some extent. Some proven preventive measures include, maintaining an appropriate weight to height ratio, eating a low-fat, high fiber diet, exercising regularly, quitting smoking, and taking proper care of existing medical conditions. Those afflicted with Type 1 diabetes would do well to maintain a strict regimen that maintains blood sugar levels as near normal as practicable.

So here is the bottomline. If you are going to get arthritis, statistically speaking, it will be osteoarthritis. It will come upon you because you are getting older, which is a good thing compared to the alternative.

Other primary types of arthritis are rheumatoid arthritis, a truly ugly condition that afflicts about 1% of the world's population. Septic arthritis is caused by an infection in the joint. The infection invades the cartilage and ultimately destroys all or part.

Arthritis costs the United States roughly $50 billion in lost wages and $50 billion in health care costs. Arthritis results in about 1 million hospitalizations annually and fully 45 million visits to outpatient health care centers and clinics.