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Clinicians Should Recommend Exercise More Often, Expert Says

  |  Issue: March 2021  |  

Little Steps Can Help

But the recommendations can be simple, she said. Exercise sessions can be any length, although new forms of exercise should be undertaken incrementally. Simple steps, such as taking the stairs instead of the elevator or parking a bit farther away from a store entrance, are helpful.

“Even small increases are important,” Dr. Katz said. “Any activity is better than no activity.”

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Thomas Collins is a freelance medical writer based in Florida.

References

  1. Dunlop DD, Song J, Semanik PA, et al. Relation of physical activity time to incident disability in community dwelling adults with or at risk of knee arthritis: Prospective cohort study. BMJ. 2014 Apr 29;348:g2472.
  2. Bartlett DB, Willis LH, Slentz CA, et al. Ten weeks of high-intensity interval walk training is associated with reduced disease activity and improved innate immune function in older adults with rheumatoid arthritis: A pilot study. Arthritis Res Ther. 2018 Jun 14;20(1):127. 
  3. Callahan LF, Shreffler JH, Altpeter M, et al. Evaluation of group and self-directed formats of the Arthritis Foundation’s Walk With Ease Program. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2011 Aug;63(8):1098–1107.
  4. Iversen MD, Frits M, von Heideken J, et al. Physical activity and correlates of physical activity participation over three years in adults with rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2017 Oct;69(10):1535–1545.
  5. Katz P, Margaretten M, Trupin L, et al. Role of sleep disturbance, depression, obesity, and physical inactivity in fatigue in rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2016 Jan;68(1):81–90.
  6. Katz P, Margaretten M, Gregorich S, et al. Physical activity to reduce fatigue in rheumatoid arthritis: A randomized controlled trial. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2018 Jan;70(1):1–10.
  7. Cooney GM, Dwan K, Greig CA, et al. Exercise for depression. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2013 Sep 12;(9):CD004366.
  8. Katz P, Julian L, Tonner MC, et al. Physical activity, obesity, and cognitive impairment among women with systemic lupus erythematosus. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2012 Apr;64(4):502–510.

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