Q4. Why do many more women than men get arthritis?

A4. Unfortunately, this is where women lose out. Many forms of arthritis such as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis occur in many more women than men.

Why is this? There are several reasons for this which include a lighter skeleton and the tendency to lose bone mass during and after the menopause: tendons are looser and less strong in women compared to men which increases the risk of an injury: plus the role of the female hormone oestrogen which decreases during the menopause.

Oestrogen has a protective effect on the bones but once levels of this fall, for example during the menopause, then the bones start to thin and weaken.

This increases the risk of a fracture and conditions such as osteoarthritis or osteoporosis.

For more information visit our arthritis facts and figures section.

Arthritis FAQs:

Arthritis FAQs

• Q1. What is arthritis?
• Q2. How common is arthritis?
• Q3. Does arthritis only affect older people?
• Q4. Why do many more women than men get arthritis?
• Q5. How many types of arthritis are there?
• Q6. What is the most common type of arthritis?
• Q7. Which joints are most likely to be affected by arthritis?
• Q8. What causes arthritis?
• Q9. What are the signs of arthritis?
• Q10. How is arthritis diagnosed?

• Q11. How is arthritis treated?
• Q12. What are anti-inflammatories?
• Q13. How do steroids work?
• Q14. What are disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs?
• Q15. What is methotrexate?
• Q16. What are anti-TNF drugs?
• Q17. What is Prednisolone?
• Q18. How do you cope with arthritis?
• Q19. Can you inherit an arthritis gene?
• Q20. Is there a cure for arthritis?