Lifestyle adjustments and their beneficial outcomes

Maria is very happy with the results of her efforts. It took some time and she had to make some lifestyle changes but it was worth it.

She has lost weight, and has now a norma BMI, she has learned to enjoy a health diet with the occasional indulgence of eating foods with sugar, which she loves. She know how to manage that in order to maintain her weight. And she understands how her weight, her water consumption and her choice of exercise (intesity of activity, type of activity) can have an immediate effect on her pain level as well as on her general sense of well being.

At first, living with osteoarthritis at her age seemed inevitable and thought it would lead to permanent disability. Her friends have more problems than her. She follows a group on Facebook where people discuss how difficult it is, with the pain, the sleep deprivation, how they need to always take medication. She now realizes that lifestyle choices are crucial to the outcome of the disease.