Interesting Article

A friend of mine recently shared some old issues of Runners World he had on-hand.  There was a great article, Don't Your Knees Hurt?, in the May, 2014 issue.

The key point of the article is there is a growing body of research indicating running is, in fact, not nearly as harmful on one's knees as commonly believed.  In particular, a 2013 study first published in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise revealed "runners had 18 percent lower risk of osteoarthritis and 23 percent lower risk for a hip replacement versus walkers."  Paul Williams, of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the study's author, even went so far as to say, "When you use your joint, more of the body's resources get directed to building up and protecting the joint."

I wasn't able to find the full study but I did find the following article at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's website:

Running, Even in Excess, Doesn't Lead to More Osteoarthritis and Hip Replacements

Now it is worth mentioning this is only a single study.  Although there is a growing body of research with similar findings it is never wise to take one study and treat it as infallible.  I offer it merely as a seemingly credible source of knowledge to help debunk what may be a myth that running is simply "bad for your knees."

As a final note, Runner's World tends to host its articles online a few months after they are first published in the magazine.  I therefore encourage you to search for the original article if you're interested.