Have you wondered why joint pain worsens in winters? If you have been living with arthritic joints, you must have experienced a spike in discomfort as the mercury starts falling. In fact, many people with orthopaedic conditions dread the onset of winters as this makes their joints more painful, inflexible and creaky. Movement becomes more troublesome and overall uneasiness increases in some people. Many people wonder whether cold temperature has a direct link with increase in pain or whether cold winds have a negative impact on the health of the joints. However, it is not the temperature directly, but a complex interplay of several factors that make winters more difficult for people with orthopaedic joints like arthritic knees, shoulders or hip joint.
Let’s first understand why joints seem more uneasy in the winter season:
Our pain threshold decreases. To be fair, some of the increase in pain and discomfort is not actual increase in pain but an increase in sensation. You must have noticed how even a minor injury or just a little cut or bruise gives so much more pain in winters. Our threshold for pain decreases in winters as our nerve endings become more sensitive in colder temperatures. That is why even a minor injury causes an intense piercing pain. Sometimes joint pain, similar in intensity to the one experienced in summers, feels more intense because our sensation has grown more sensitive in winters.
Blood doesn’t circulate as well to the extreme parts of the body. In winters, the body prefers to keep warmer blood closer to the heart and this affects our blood circulation to the joints. This makes the joints more painful and stiff. The increase in pain is therefore also experienced by people who have had past orthopaedic injuries such as a fracture or sprain or surgeries like joint replacements, or bone fusions.
Due to extreme cold and chilly winds, our level of activity tends to go down drastically in winters as most elderly folks prefer to stay indoors. The daily walking or exercise schedule is not followed strictly because it is so uncomfortable to step out in the freezing weather. We also tend to go lazy and prefer the comfort of the blanket over the necessary but difficult physical exertion.
When it comes to arthritic joints, regular movement becomes all the more necessary to prevent rigidity in the joints. Thelack of exercise in winters further leads to stiffness in the joints.
Pressure conditions change with weather: Barometric pressure of the air pressure that the atmosphere exerts on objects on the earth is a factor that changes when weather conditions shift. The atmospheric pressure may rise of fall depending upon the weather front. This shift may also cause discomfort or inflammation as the joints adapt to the changing weather.
Here are some tips you should start following before the winter reaches its peak:
Exercise: Do not forego your daily exercise in winters. In this weather, you need it more. Exercising helps increase blood circulation and enables warm blood reach all peripheral areas of the body including joints. Healthy blood circulation will keep the joints flexible and warm, and prevent pain. Regular exercise also helps keep the muscles strong and healthy which is key to holding the arthritic joints together for a long time.
Eat a well balanced diet comprising fruits, vegetables, pulses, cereals and dairy products to ensure the overall health and well-being of the joints and muscles. Knee pain patients also need a good dose of vitamins like vitamin D, C and K to keep the bones and cartilage well nourished. A deficiency of vitamins can manifest itself in the form of joint pain, even inflammation. Oranges, cabbage, carrots, spinach, tomatoes are a must. Spend time under the sun to allow production of vitamin D.
Drink more water: The cartilage between the joints is a smooth soft tissue responsible for reducing friction between bone edges. For its surface to remain smooth it has to be hydrated and full of fluid. Hence the importance of keeping your body hydrated for preventing joint pain to worsen. If you feel less thirsty in winters, it doesn’t mean you need less water.
Never leave your arthritic joints unexamined. Make sure an orthopaedic specialist has seen them through an X-Ray to know the extent of damage. If needed, consider a joint replacement for long term mobility.
Wear knee supports : Knee supports help support the weak joint. Your orthopaedic specialist who will recommend good knee supporting braces that can be worn to provide more support and stability to the joint. In case the pain is intense, the knee braces also help in giving relief.
Physiotherapy is usually recommended for patients of osteoarthritis as it helps keep the muscles and leg nerves strong and the joints flexible. In winters, when joint stiffness increases, physiotherapy and heat ensure greater mobility and lesser pain.
