Our grandparents always accurately predict the onset of cold weather! Can painful joints and old injuries really anticipate the weather? How does this happen?
The secret of this phenomenon lies in the functioning of our nervous system. The sensory organs and nerves located throughout the body collect information and transmit it to the spinal cord, and then to the brain, which processes and interprets the received data.
In fact, we are not aware of all the processes occurring in our body, as it would be too overwhelming for the brain. The central control organ would quickly become fatigued from processing such a volume of information. Therefore, the nerves have a threshold system that transmits signals only after a certain level of activity is reached. This can be illustrated by the example of clothing: when you put on a sweater, you feel it, but over time your skin stops registering that sensation.
How is this related to pain sensations in cold weather? Pain signals also need to overcome a certain threshold before the nerves send them to the brain. Sometimes, when the initial impulse (pain) is insufficient to exceed the threshold, or when you have already adapted to it, a little more “information” is needed to overcome it. This additional stimulus is created by the cold, causing the brain to interpret this combined sensation as pain. This is why “old wounds” such as joint arthritis or the consequences of fractures start to bother you.
There is another reason. When we are cold, the body strives to conserve heat by directing more blood to vital organs such as the heart and lungs. As a result, blood vessels in the extremities constrict, causing tension due to a lack of blood. This tension is exacerbated by low physical activity (everyone just wants to curl up into a ball). This condition can cause discomfort and pain, especially in older adults.
It is believed that older people can predict rain due to the decrease in atmospheric pressure during cold spells. Although evidence for this opinion is not very abundant, some studies have shown that at low pressure, inflamed tissues swell more, which can stimulate the nerves and cause pain sensations.
