The Effect of Eight Weeks of Hand-Selected Strength Exercises and the Cinnamon Supplementation on Inflammatory Biomarkers in Elderly Women with Osteoarthritis

Background: Osteoarthritis is the most common joint disease (arthropathy) and a cause of disability in aging ages. The prevalence rate of the osteoarthritis is different and is related to different indicators. Objectives: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of eight weeks of hand-selected exercises and cinnamon supplementation on inflammatory biomarkers in elderly women with osteoarthritis. Methods: The participants of this study were 48 women with hand-osteoarthritis. They divided into four groups (strength exercises, cinnamon-honey supplementation, combinatory and control) randomly. The first group underwent the hand-selected strength exercises. The second group used the supplementations for 8 weeks. The third group also applied hand-selected exercises and supplements simultaneously. The fourth group also participated as a control group without any exercise or supplementation. Patients’ TNfα and IL6 levels were measured before and after applying the independent variables and were compared. The dependent t-test was used to compare between pre and posttest and the ANOVA test to compare TNfα and IL6 levels between the four groups. The significance level P ≤ 0.05 was considered. Results: The results showed that by applying variables, the strength exercises and cinnamon-honey supplementary as well as the combination of exercises and supplementary have had a positive effect on inflammatory biomarkers and in fact, 8 weeks of resistance exercises and using cinnamon-honey supplements in women with hand osteoarthritis have led to a decrease in IL 6 and TNfα levels. Conclusions: Therefore, it is recommended to use wrist resistance exercises with supplements (cinnamon and honey) to accelerate the recovery of the disease and improve the wrist inflammatory.