Category Arthritis

When your arthritis acts up, do you pick an ice pack or a heating pad to soothe your aching joints? Both hot and cold can relieve chronic joint pain. The trick is to know when to apply one or the other. Learn more about hot and cold therapy to help you make the right decision in every situation.

Heat Therapy

When your joints hurt more than usual, it’s natural to reach for something warm to soothe it. Heat is the answer when your joints are stiff, tense and sore. Your options include using a heating pad, hot pack, warmed hand towel or hot water bottle. You can also soak in a hot bath to warm your entire body.

Heat therapy relaxes your muscles, stimulates blood flow, improves circulation, helps increase your range of motion, and reduces joint stiffness and pain.

Make sure you implement hea...

The combination of arthritis and winter weather can add up to plenty of discomfort for people in cold-weather climates. Frigid weather makes it tempting to sit in front of the fireplace or wrapped in blankets indoors, rather than venturing out into blustery wind, rain or snow to exercise. To keep arthritis pain in check and maintain your health, however, follow these tips:

If you’ve been diagnosed with osteoarthritis, your doctor may prescribe a knee brace for stability, along with other treatments like medicine and visits to a physical therapist. Knee braces can reduce osteoarthritis symptoms, and many patients report improved knee function while wearing the brace. The brace can lessen pain you might experience while going up stairs, walking or performing other daily activities. Knee braces may enable you to walk further and for a longer time than you could without the brace. 

As winter approaches, many people with arthritis become just a little more aware of their condition. Although there’s no concrete medical evidence that achy joints (or those more achy than usual) are a good predictor of cold weather or rain — it’s a common belief.