Can a drop in barometric pressure really cause aches and pains?

Are you convinced you can feel in your bones that the weather is changing? You may be right. The latest edition of "Science Behind the Forecast" explains why.

Bill Burton: It's time for us to take a look at the Science Behind the Forecast as I am joined by WAVE 3 meteorologist Tawana Andrew. Good morning, Tawana.

Tawana Andrew: Good morning. Today, we are talking about some of the weird ways that the weather can actually impact your body.

BB: Yeah, if you ever had an old buddy say, I know when the weather's changing, because I got this knee injury when I used to play football, and you just kind of roll your eyes. Well, there's kind of something to that the weather and pressure. Atmospheric pressure can create aches and pains for your body. Explain, please.

TA: So the weight of the air around us is known as barometric or atmospheric pressure, and low and high barometric pressure can impact our bodies differently. You have factors like altitude, your age, pre existing health conditions, all of that plays a role in how atmospheric pressure affects your body. Now a barometer is what is used to measure the atmospheric pressure in millimeters or inches of mercury. And fun fact, for those of you who like to throw these out to your family and friends, the standard sea level is 29.92 inches of mercury. So you can throw that out there and sound super smart.

Barometric pressure drops as altitude increases, and high pressure, as we all know, is indicative of clear, calm weather, while pressure drops are usually a sign of changing weather and sometimes incoming precipitation. So atmospheric pressure changes can lead to anything from headaches, joint pain to nausea and dizziness. It makes you tired. Can even make it a little bit more difficult for you to breathe if you have any sort of breathing ailment.

So the reason that this happens is that when you have a decrease in the blood and oxygen flow to your brain, when atmospheric pressure drops, like with cold fronts and area pressure, that is what causes headaches or migraines. I get this often. I can literally tell when a cold front is coming because my head starts to hurt, which is great for forecasting, not so great for life in general. And then also these lower pressures can lead to fatigue because you have less of that oxygen that you need getting to your brain. Drops in atmospheric pressure can also make it harder to breathe for anybody with respiratory illnesses, because that low pressure makes it actually harder for the air to flow into your lungs. So you're working harder, in general, when there's low pressure nearby to just get for your daily life and breathe.

And another way you mentioned, you know, old buddy with the football injury, and they're like, Oh, my knee hurts when a front is coming. They're entirely right when they say that, Because they're not, they're they're not messing with you. They're right. Because as barometric pressure falls, the tissues around your joints could actually expand or swell, and that leads to pain, especially for anyone with injuries or arthritis. And if there are colder temperatures coming along with that, it can actually make the joint fluid thicker and add to the pain that you're feeling. Atmospheric pressure changes can also impact the inner ear, causing dizzy, dizziness, nausea, a loss of balance and coordination. So all of that plays a role in how our bodies work when the weather is changing.

So maybe when that friend's like, oh, cold front's coming. I feel it in my back or my elbow or my knee. Maybe listen to them. They actually know what they're talking about.