Achy joints
Achy or stiff joints have ordinary causes: overuse, weight, cold, low vitamin D, perimenopause. When to see a GP, and what the evidence says about collagen, vitamin C, omega 3 and vitamin D.
What is usually behind it
Aching, stiff joints in the morning that ease with movement are common and usually mechanical: overuse, a new activity, cold weather, weight, and, in women in their forties and fifties, falling oestrogen. Low vitamin D can show up as widespread aches.
See your GP if a joint is hot, swollen or red, if stiffness lasts more than an hour each morning, if you have a fever, or if pain wakes you at night.
What people in this position most often look at. Vitamin D, which contributes to the maintenance of normal muscle function and normal bones; vitamin C, which contributes to normal collagen formation for the normal function of cartilage; collagen peptides, where the trials measured skin and joint outcomes at around 90 days (collagen); omega 3.
Next: Supplements for joints · Nutri365.
Written by Nutri Tailor from the Health Reference Library. Last checked 6 September 2026. General information, not personal advice.