Nowadays, osteoarthritis (OA) in knee joints has been proliferating like a pandemic in India. The number of people afflicted with osteoarthritis, especially above the age of 50, is increasing by the day. Consequently, knee replacement surgery has become very commonplace.
Why is there a surge in early degeneration of knee cartilage and the underlying bone? Being myself a victim of osteoarthritis, I have engaged in conversations with cross-sections of people on the issue. A credible theory on the root cause has appeared from assorted opinions.
The primary cause appears to be lesser usage of knee joints these days due to technology-induced lifestyle upgradations. Reflecting on trajectory of lifestyle since my childhood, the following changes seem to have had adverse impact on the health of knees.
I remember from my early childhood that the ladies of the house used to cook meals squatting on the floor. Womenfolk cooked meals on chulha and angithi (indigenous stoves) fuelled by firewood and coal, respectively. Family members also ate food squatted on the floor. Squatting necessitated close folding of legs at knee joints. After LPG cylinders came on the scene, our kitchen was modified so that cooks could prepare meals in a standing position. Soon thereafter, dining table was brought in our house. We began to eat our meals, laid on the dining table, sitting on dining chairs.
Initially we had Indian-style toilets which were detached from the living area. For using the Indian-style toilets, we had to sit resting on our soles with legs fully folded at knee joints and the thighs pressing the stomach. The trend of attached bathrooms, which had European-style seats, caught on gradually. The use of European-style seat in toilets has further reduced the frequency of full folding of legs at knee joint.
There were no shower fittings in the bathrooms in our house when I was a kid. Gradually, when showers were fitted in bathrooms, most of us of old era would still squat on the floor of the bathroom and bathe using bucket and mug.
In modern hotels, you will not find any bucket and mug in the shower cubicle. You must bathe in standing posture only using the multiple showers installed. Now the new-age homes also have shower enclosures in bathrooms where bath can be taken in standing posture only. One more avenue of knee exercise has been annihilated by new lifestyle.
Use of elevators has also increased. Not only do high-rise residential buildings have elevators, but these are now being installed in two/ three storey residential houses also. When an elevator is available in a building, people tend to use elevator for going to the next floor also. The muscles supporting the knee bones are thus deprived of exercise.
As the lifestyle of the poor people has remained unchanged, we can see them squatting easily on the ground. They comfortably squat down on their feet with the legs fully folded at knee joints.
Shifts in lifestyles induced by the rise of technology and affluence have obviated physical exercise arising from performance of daily chores. The exemplifications delineated above have adversely impacted our knees joints and the muscles supporting them. Therefore, we should take care of our knees by regularly performing knee-specific exercises as automatic movements have ebbed from daily routine.