There meteoropathy it is a syndrome that affects the development of debilitating symptoms or the exacerbations of existing symptoms during changes in the weather or seasons. It is to be distinguished from meteorological sensitivitywhich can be seen as a mild form, and which concerns individuals who are in some way sensitive to meteorological changes, without this leading to real debilitation. It impacts on many levels of ours physiology and not only that, reflecting on the psyche and mood. The variations of temperature, pressure And humidity are the main causes of meteoropathy, and can modify activity hormonal And neurologicalreducing endorphins, often known as “happy hormones,” and increasing stress hormones. Symptoms range from nausea and dizziness to mood disorders, vary according to individual health status and season and are more intense before the meteoropathic event that during.
The main symptoms of meteoropathy
Let’s start by saying that there are two types of meteoropathy: primary and secondary. There primary meteoropathy it affects people clinically healthywho, during certain meteorological events, such as rain and intense cold, typically begin to complain of muscle and joint pain, mood changes and physical weakness: all symptoms that tend to vanish as soon as the weather stabilizes.
There secondary meteoropathyon the other hand, afflicts people who already experience chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular diseases or lung diseases. In these cases, the weather conditions to which these people are sensitive, they worsen the disorders they already haveimpacting cardiovascular and respiratory conditions, and increasing the possibility of “mental problems” such as depression, anxiety, sleep disorders and hypersensitivity to pain.
Meteopathy, therefore, is a disorder that varies from individual to individual, because the symptoms have a lot to do with pre-existing physical and mental conditions. For this reason, i symptoms the main ones are the most variousbut they can be grouped into three broad categories:
- Neuropsychological and mood symptoms: include mood alterations, high irritability and nervousness, anxiety, psychophysical fatigue and chronic tiredness, as well as sleep disorders and difficulty concentrating. Depression is the most evident trait in scientific research and takes the characteristic name of seasonal affective disorder.
- Physical-motor symptoms: classic muscle and joint pain, increased pain sensitivity, headaches (often triggered by drops in air pressure), and chronic pain at the site of old injuries or scars.
- Visceral symptoms: symptoms related to breathing difficulties, stomach problems and dizziness.
What happens to the body?
Problems occur in the body of those who suffer from this disorder endocrinological and neurophysiological changeswith a increase of some known hormones, the stress hormones (adrenocorticotropics, AHTC) produced by the pituitary gland, and a reduction of the beloved endorphinsthe hormones associated with an improvement in mood, which decrease during meteorological events, lowering the pain threshold. As to why this happens, scholars believe that the magnetic variations of atmospheric events can directly impact the activity of thehypothalamus which, by regulating the pituitary gland, impacts the endocrine glands, i.e. on hormonal activity.
Some studies on mice have shown us that certain neurons of the vestibular nucleusthe area that controls our balance, respond to changes in the pressure atmospheric, determining the dizziness that can accompany meteoropathy. There are good reasons to believe that this mechanism is also triggered in humans, as well as in mice. Atmospheric pressure is also crucial for another reason: when this is lower (when there is a barometric drop), the fluids and gases in the body expand. This expansion causes increased pressure in the inflamed tissues, in joints or in old injuriesintensifying the general pain.
Finally, at temperatures above 30° C or when humidity exceeds 70%, the thermoregulation system activates, trying to cool the body. This mechanism represents one additional strain on the cardiovascular system: the attempt to cool the body leads to increased sweating and loss of fluids which can trigger and worsen the chain of physiological reactions of meteoropathy.
What are the causes of meteoropathy: climatic events
Each meteorological individual can be more or less sensitive to certain changes in the climate, but they are in particular the temperaturethehumidity and the atmospheric pressure to impact the symptoms. Another characteristic of meteoropathic pains is that of increase in intensity before or after changes in weatherwhile they result milder during the climate event, which suggests that it is precisely the change itself that generates the problem.
The seasons they are another central element: although they do not constitute the direct cause of meteoropathy, this is clearly associated with the characteristics of the various moments of the year. To give an example: patients with arterial hypertension they have a higher risk of meteoropathic hypertensive crisis in summer, slightly lower in winter and autumn, while it improves in spring. Instead, the seasonal affective disorder which we were talking about before, and which primarily concerns the state of psycho-physical depression, is more recurrent during autumn and winter.
