The weather can make or break your mood. According to research, changes in the weather can affect your emotions and make you feel tired faster.
Aside from your mood, weather changes can also cause various aches and pains. There is an ongoing belief that there is a connection between weather and joint pain.
But is there a truth to the assumption about the effect of the weather on joint pain? Learn more as you read the rest of the article.
Can the Weather Bring Joint Pain?
According to chiropractor Andrew Bang, more patients complained about joint pain in cold weather.
Another study in the UK looked into 13,000 respondents who lived with health conditions like arthritis. The study discovered joint aches often occur during days with higher humidity, decreased barometric pressure levels, or strong winds.
These days, the demand for joint pain relief could also increase significantly.
How Can Changes in Barometric Pressure Affect Joint Pain?
The purpose of barometric pressure is to measure the atmosphere’s air weight that presses down against us.
The average barometric pressure on the surface of the Earth is 14.7 pounds per square inch (psi). But the pressure may alter during weather changes.
The air will press less on the body when the psi drops during worsening weather. As a result, the tissues on the body will begin to swell slightly due to the lowered compression. This change can affect your joints.
Also, the decrease in barometric pressure often results in cooler temperatures. It can be a problem for people with joint pain since chilly weather can trigger or aggravate their condition.
The Arthritis Foundation shared that while cold weather is not the cause of arthritis, it can worsen discomfort, heighten pain sensitivity, slow down blood circulation, and cause muscle spasms.
Top Tips to Reduce Weather-Related Joint Pain Revealed
If you already dread the colder months due to constant joint aches and pains, these 5 ways to beat winter joint pain could help improve your condition.
1. Keep Yourself Warm
Aside from making you feel more comfortable all day, wearing winter-appropriate outfits during the colder weather could help reduce joint pain.
Invest in warm clothes that you can wear in layers. Keep your joints like hands, hips, and knees well insulated to fight against joint pain.
You may also use electric blankets indoors or heating pads outside the house to add warmth to your body.
2. Mind Your Diet
Adding more foods with anti-inflammatory properties can help alleviate joint pain during cold weather. Food choices like nuts, seeds, avocados, and a variety of oily fish with high omega-3 fatty acid content are the best options for this purpose.
You may also eat more food with high anti-inflammatory ingredients during winter, such as:
- Garlic
- Onions
- Turmeric
- Grapefruit
- Berries
- Probiotic foods (yogurt and kefir)
- Dark green leafy vegetables
You may also include food supplements for joint health in your diet. Investing in the Joint-4 supplement to take regularly can naturally improve your joint condition, help the body’s inflammatory response, and assist in getting healthy cartilage.
Regular consumption of food and natural food supplements for joint health all year long can give you additional protection against joint discomfort during the cold months.
3. Stay Active
Your lifestyle can affect your joint health. If you remain sedentary, you might increase your risk of joint aches over time.
It would be best to keep moving to help alleviate your joint discomfort. With regular exercise, you will be able to save your body parts from being stiff. Working out can also improve muscle strength to lift the strain off the joints.
While exercising during the winter can be challenging due to the gloomy weather, you can look for workout regimens you can do indoors to stay active.
Some of the best low-impact exercises indoors during winter include yoga, dancing, and lunges. You may also opt to go indoor swimming, especially if you have access to a heated pool.
4. Get More Vitamin D
Research revealed that a deficiency in vitamin D could elevate joint pain. It could also enhance the body’s sensitivity to arthritic pain.
Since vitamin D is crucial to help maintain good health, you need to load up on this nutrient to keep your body strong and healthy.
However, sunshine, considered the primary source of vitamin D, is limited during the winter. So look for vitamin D supplements that could provide the much-needed nutrient during the cold weather.
5. Maintain Your Weight
The cold weather may make you crave yummy and luxurious treats like hot chocolates, fondues, and other fat-filled delicacies.
However, these foods can make you gain weight and increase your risk for joint pain.
So try to keep your weight at a healthy level. While this tip can be challenging during the winter when there are plenty of holidays and celebrations, avoiding adding more pounds can help protect your joints from carrying extra weight all the time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can You Avoid Joint Pain During the Winter?
Yes, you can help to dodge joint pain and discomfort during the winter. You only need to follow the tips mentioned above and have a routine checkup with your doctor to see if there are other underlying causes of your joint inflammation.
What Climate is Best for Joint Pain?
Most people with arthritis prefer dry and warm weather since joint inflammation symptoms seem to be lower during this time. But you can still manage the joint pain during winter if you know what to do and avoid all your triggers as the temperature drops.
Can You Take Joint Pain Reliever During the Winter?
A little help from a pain reliever is welcome, especially if you cannot stand the joint aches. But you must always check with your doctor before taking any pain relief medicine, even those available over the counter.
It is also crucial to state all the other medicines you are currently taking to your doctor. It will help avoid complications along the way.
Free Yourself From Joint Pain This Winter
Try following some of these tips to achieve pain-free joint adventures this winter so you do not have to worry about missing all the fun during the colder months due to aching joints. With proper preparations, you no longer need to dread the colder months and can enjoy the chilly weather with your loved ones.
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