Losing weight and doing exercises can prove beneficial for patients suffering from painful and incapacitating symptoms of osteoarthritis of the knee.

An average weight loss of five percent in overweight and obese older patients brought an 18 percent gain in overall function, researchers found.

Conducted over an 18-month period by Wake Forest University of US, the study focused on 142 overweight and obese adults with radiographic evidence of knee osteoarthritis, says science portal EurekAlert.

Belonging to the age group of 60 to 89, the subjects were mostly female (74 percent) and white (75 percent).

Over the course of the study, all participants followed a prescribed weight loss plan, some through diet only, some through exercise, and some through a combination of healthy living habits.

At the end of the study all the participants lost an average of two percent of their weight and lowered their body mass index by three percent.

After observing the participants, researchers indicated that, for every one pound of weight lost, there is a four-pound reduction in the load exerted on the knee for each step taken during daily activities.

"The accumulated reduction in knee load for a one-pound loss in weight would be more than 4,800 pounds per mile walked," said Stephen P. Messier the lead author of the study.