Running helps delay arthritis

Doctors say they have finally proved that running delays the symptoms of arthritis in later life.

Even top athletes such as marathon runner Paula Radcliffe are less likely to suffer the condition than couch potatoes, according to a new study.

It found that runners delay the onset of arthritis by more than 12 years on average compared with those who never exercise. Those who get the most benefit run between six and 20 miles a week.

The findings prove wrong the myth that exercising always speeds up the rate at which joints 'wear out' and can bring early osteoarthritis - the form of arthritis caused by ageing.

But some forms of exercise are still bad for you if they lead to a 'tearing' of the joints, the doctors warn.

Professor Jim Fries, an expert in healthy ageing, released his findings at a medical conference in Sorrento, Italy, yesterday.

He said his research proves that running is a good form of exercise despite heavy wear on the joints.

'Running or jogging does not increase the risk of osteoarthritis, even though traditionally we thought it was a disease of wear and tear,' he said. 'It's the wearing that's OK and not the tearing, because it's important to avoid injury.

'We know now that painless running or other activities which are aerobic and make you fit help you remain vigorous for longer.

'You are four times better off in avoiding disability, and that's what we all worry about.

'But we can't say the same for the type of exercise that involves tears around the joint, primarily through twisting and turning. This accelerates development of osteoarthritis, particularly of the knee. Internationally, the most frequent cause is football.

'Even ballet dancers are at increased risk for osteoarthritis - at the base of the big toes.'

Professor Fries and colleagues at Stanford University, California, studied 538 runners' club members and 423 people who never did any exercise. They were all aged around 58 when the study began in 1984.

The two groups were similarly healthy at the start of the study, and each year doctors assessed them for disability and pain, checking the progression of osteoarthritis with X-rays and examining them for signs of osteoporosis, or thinning bones.

By the end of the study, 20 per cent of the couch potatoes had pain and disability compared with 5 per cent of the runners.

The runners also had greater bone density and less bone mineral loss over time.

Among the non- runners, women were far more likely than men to experience disability.