How Obesity Causes Knee Problems?

Knee problems is part of the list of ailments that obese people face. Overweight leads many people to repair cartilage tears in the knee. Recently a study has been conducted to find out the relationship between knee problems and obesity. The study found that if a person's body-mass index is slightly more than the healthy range, then that person is three times more likely to have a cartilage tear. It is found that the heaviest men are 15 times more likely to have torn knee cartilage, and women in the same category are at 25 times more risk.

There are probably several factors involved in the meniscal injuries and obesity correlation. It is more than just putting more pressure on the knees. One possibility is that obese people have circulation problems that reduce the blood supply to the cartilage. Now researchers are just barely at the point of recognition of the severity of the problem. We don't have a good treatment and prevention strategy yet.

Research studies also showed that obese women had nearly 4 times the risk of knee problems compared to non-obese women. For obese men, the risk was nearly 5 times greater. Overweight individuals in their thirties who did not have knee problems earlier were at greater risk of developing the disease later. Investigations that performed repeated x-rays over time also have found that being overweight significantly increases the risk of developing knee problems. It is estimated that persons in the highest quintile of body weight have up to 10 times the risk of knee problems than those in the lowest quintile.