Ageing Starts In Your 30s: Why Bone And Joint Health Needs Early Attention

Bones are a reservoir of calcium in our body. They form our skeleton, which gives our body the beautiful form that we have. The joints are between our bones, allowing us mobility and recreational activities like sports.

Build strong bones

Foundation years are our young age, when we must strengthen the building blocks through appropriate nutrition and activities.

Actually, ageing of our body starts as soon as we are grown up. Most of us don’t feel a thing when we are in our thirties. We are busy building our family and career, and health and fitness sometimes take a back seat. By the time we are in our late 30s, we start to feel the effects of ageing.

Ageing affects

Typically, the bones start to lose calcium mass because of a variety of factors, like age and lack of exercise. While the bones are getting weak, the joints tend to start experiencing wear and tear. Joints are formed by cartilage covering the ends of bones and a viscous joint fluid.

Ageing, lack of exercise, being overweight, bad habits, certain diseases and sometimes family history can lead to early wear of cartilage, leading to arthritis. We know that knee arthritis can require knee replacements.

Nutrition

So, what do we do? Charity begins at home. Start looking after yourself. Hydration and antioxidants maintain the health of cartilage in our joints. I would say, “Have a rainbow every day.” Your diet should have colourful vegetables and fruits to support good bone and joint health.

Nutrition plays a big role in healthy joints, in addition to strong bones. A balanced diet with calcium, magnesium, vitamin D and B12 maintains not only good general health but also the state of your bones and joints.

There are various nutritional supplements, like glucosamine, MSM, collagen, rosehip extract, turmeric extract, etc., which I often prescribe to help in early arthritis.

Managing joint pain and uric acid

One of the common reasons for joint pain is high uric acid. Typically, it is found in those who have excessive meat and alcohol intake. Improving these habits improves health in general, as well as helps normalise uric acid levels and get rid of pain.

Exercise

Exercise has multifold benefits. In addition to building fitness and stamina, it builds strong bones, powerful muscles and flexible joints. It improves lung capacity, cardiac fitness, ensures weight control and improves mental well-being. Exercise busts stress and makes you feel good.

After a long, stressful, tiring day, spend an hour in the gym or play your favourite sport to see the difference.

Exercises like stretching, flexibility training, yoga and swimming will give you flexible joints. These exercises will help fight arthritis.

Always allow time to warm up and stretch before any exercise. Keep a count of the steps taken per day on your smartphone app.

Know your limits

While moderate exercise is good for our body, excessive exercise and extreme sports are not everybody’s cup of tea. Most of us are not built for extreme endurance activities like marathons.

Don’t feel bad if you can’t run a marathon or play football.

Actually, you can end up having injuries or even a cardiac event by pushing your body beyond its limits. Know your body and enjoy what you do.

Get the basics right

Find the right exercise you enjoy. Find the right footwear that allows you to enjoy your sport.

Find the right diet that you enjoy and that keeps you fit.

Prioritise your health

So, let’s pledge today! We will take out half an hour for ourselves to do any exercise we enjoy.
We will balance our diet with protein and vegetables, along with plenty of hydration.
You will see the results in a month or two. You will enjoy the fit and stress-free version of yourself.

(Dr Sachin Bhonsle, MS (orth), FRCS (Glasg) UK Chief Robotic Joint Replacement Surgeon, Dr. LH HIRANANDANI HOSPITAL Mumbai)

Published on: Sunday, November 15, 2026, 07:00 AM IST