Facts about Winter Season and How it Can Affect Your Back Pain

As temperatures outside have started dropping, you may be observing an ache in your lower back, neck or some other portion of your injured spine that is not too unfamiliar to you until now. You may have already started assuming that these two things have a link- the pain in your back, joints, and muscles and the colder weather outside. You have already started crossing your fingers hoping that you won't have to go through the entire winter season with this pain. If you have a proper understanding of why and how the cold weather has a negative impact on your spine, it can be the first proactive step to combat your pain. So, keeping this point in your mind, check out some of those crucial facts that are related to back pain this winter season.

1. While any connection between back pain and barometric pressure is yet to be ascertained or known, cold weather can make your back injuries more susceptible to pain

There are many folks who claim to have experienced joint, neck and back pain either before a storm begins or if there is a sudden drop in the outside temperature. The condition implies that the bodies of these people are able to recognize the changes in the barometric pressure in some way or the other that take place on such occasions. Yet, there has been no scientific proof to establish a direct correlation between a person's back pain and lower atmospheric pressure.

However, the point that has been observed is that when a person feels cold, there is a tightening in the ligaments, tendons, and muscles in his or her body making them less flexible. Thus, they become more vulnerable to injuries, which in turn may lead to acute back pain. It may be possible to avoid back problems in winter. If you practice wearing the right kind of clothes to make you feel comfortable and warm, stay physically active, practice basic techniques to avoid falling down and stretch the muscles on a regular basis, you can combat back pain in winters.

2. Winter days can be gloomy and dark leading to depression. It, in turn, may aggravate or cause chronic or acute back pain

Winter days have less sunlight and colder temperatures. Plus, there could be stress related to holidays. All these factors may together affect your mental well-being in the cold weather. There are some people who go through SAD or Seasonal Effective Disorder too. It is a kind of depression related to seasons, which may aggravate their back pain further.

3. It may not be always related to geography

Many patients suffering from back pain swear that their chronic pain does not vanish when they shift to a city in the South. Additionally, it does not mean that when the climate gets colder, there is a higher possibility to experience back-related problems in a specific month or time of the year. In reality, human bodies have the ability to get used to the climate where they live. Hence, irrespective of where you reside in a country, there is a great deal of likelihood that you may feel more back pain when there is a dip in the thermometer.

Having said so, when you stay in a locality where you need to walk through icy sidewalks and/or shovel snow, there can be a greater threat of succumbing to back injuries like sprains and muscle strains. You may have to wear special footwear for having a proper grip on slippery grounds. Also, make sure that you have the number of the urgent care clinic on speed dial.

Our Providers and Physicians at Phoenix Family Medical Clinic treat and provide care for people suffering from chronic back pain.

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