Running Does Not Raise Risk for Osteoarthritis
People who are concerned that running might wear down cartilage and lead to osteoarthritis in the knees and hips can take comfort in a study presented at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Annual Meeting (March 2023), which showed that running was not a factor in risk for osteoarthritis. For the study, researchers conducted a survey of 3,804 runners who participated in the Chicago Marathon. Mean age was 44. The prevalence of hip and/or knee osteoarthritis was 7.3%. Risk factors for osteoarthritis were found to be prior hip or knee injuries or surgery, older age, family history of osteoarthritis and being overweight. No connection was found between developing osteoarthritis and the number of years running, number of marathons run or weekly running mileage. The researchers concluded that the risk factors for developing osteoarthritis are the same for runners and nonrunners.
