ARKANSAS, USA — Does it ever feel like you can feel the change in the weather in your joints or bones? Whether you write it off as just aches and pains or maybe a superpower to predict the future, science does suggest that there is a link between the pain you feel and the conditions outside.
When meteorologists stand in front of the green screen and give their forecasts, they often talk about pressure. As it turns out, the arrival of low pressure (which often is accompanied by storms) can have impacts deep inside the human body.
When pressure drops, it can cause tissue and liquid inside the body to expand. Dr. Thomas Satterly III of Northwest Health says, “as the barometric pressure drops and changes, it feels like swelling inside your joint.”
This swelling is exacerbated in joints that suffer from arthritis and other sorts of past injuries. These joints are more sensitive to changes because they tend to contain more fluid which is susceptible to pressure drops and can expand to cause pain or discomfort.
Satterly also noted that people with prosthetics and internal fixators can also feel pain due to the difference in density between the objects and the bones they are attached to. That is why some people with an artificial hip might feel the sensation when the pressure fluctuates.
It is important to note that research has yet to connect a direct cause-and-effect relationship between joint pain and pressure change, but it is a common complaint that orthopedics receive. Some ways to help relieve the pain are to wear a compression sleeve, keep the joint warm and talk with a doctor about medication.
Storms are common this time of the year as weather conditions fluctuate from cool winter air to more humid spring air. The human body might give you a heads up on what's coming, but the 5NEWS Weather Team has the weather where you live during severe weather season.