Can Rain Bring Pain?
Posted on: Sunday, 23 February 2003, 06:00 CST
SUNDAY, Feb. 23 (HealthScoutNews) -- Many people claim they can predict the weather by how much pain they feel.
However, scientists are at a loss to explain exactly how, or even if, changing weather patterns can really affect human health, or if the damp, dreary weather is simply affecting people's spirits and just making them feel their pain more acutely.
Changes in barometric pressure, either up or down, can trigger migraines, according to the Migraine Association of Canada, but no clear link has been found for people suffering from back pain, though some report that they feel worse when a storm is approaching.
Barometric pressure measures the weight of the air. Water vapor, caused by humidity or rain, causes the density of the air (and the barometric pressure) to decrease.
There are several theories on how the change in pressure could affect your health. One is that when barometric pressure falls, there is less pressure from the atmosphere on your body, which lets already inflamed joints swell. Another theory, this one from the Mayo Clinic, suggests barometric pressure might affect the amount of fluid that lubricates the joints.
Whatever the cause, if you're feeling back pain, the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) recommends you rest your back for one day to two days by lying on your back on the floor with a pillow under your knees. After a day or two, however, it's important to get up and walk around, the AAFP adds.
---
On the Net:
American Academy of Family Physicians More science, space, and technology from RedNova Copyright © 2003 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
Related Articles
- Frequent Heartburn Causes More Than Just Pain: Study Shows Condition Can Affect Sleep, Work and Even Your Sex Life
- The Price of Pain and the Value of Suffering
- New, Interactive Health Web Site Provides Information About a Painful and Often Debilitating Condition Affecting Older Americans
- Video: Majority of Americans Over 45 Experience Joint Pain and Believe it will Affect Their Future Quality of Life
- Diamyd Files IND for Chronic Pain Therapy
- Flares from the Far Side of the Sun May Affect Space Weather
- Gasoline: Pain Now, Pain Later / Adding Ethanol Could Affect Pricing; Futures Up on Supply Decline
- 3-D Science Improves Weather Forecasts
- Chesterfield, Mo., Plant Won't Feel Affect of Pfizer Layoffs
- Clinical Trial for Pancreatic Cancer Opens at Mayo Clinic Using Tumor-Targeted Gene Therapy Vector
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds