You likely know someone who has said something along the lines of, “My joints hurt. It’s going to rain!” But just how accurate are our bodies in predicting the weather, and why do they sometimes do that?
Dr. Hillary Tamar practices family medicine at Banner Medical Center in Phoenix. She sees patients of all ages with ailments across the board.
“A lot of my patients tell me they know a storm is coming because they will have more pain in their knee,” she said. “There could be changes in the air pressure from the incoming storms.”
That change in pressure could cause a sensitive joint to swell. Patients who already have joint issues may feel more pain or stiffness.
A second complaint Tamar sees around monsoon season is respiratory disease.
Diseases like asthma or allergies can get worse with dust storms and sweep dangerous irritants up in our air, she said.
“Because it kicks up bacteria like Valley Fever, which is a fungus, and that makes it easier to get the infection."
A third health issue Tamar said to be aware of during monsoon season is migraine pain.
The combination of respiratory irritants and changing barometric pressure could cause people who suffer from migraines great pain.
“If you were having more dust, more allergy symptoms, that could definitely trigger a migraine. Migraines could definitely become worse when the pressure changes.”
