Women have been found to be eight times more likely than men to suffer from joint pain throughout their lives and it is for this reason that many of the medications and treatments are geared towards females. There are a number of reasons why women are more prone to joint pain than men, though it largely boils down to the role that hormones play in the female body as well as certain idiosyncrasies of the woman?s body.
It is believed that women have a lower pain threshold than men because of the role of estrogen. High levels of estrogen will help to protect the body from pain, but low levels, as found before and after menstruating, takes the pain threshold down with it. This fluctuation in hormones is usually the perpetrator of many joint pain problems as well; not only does the fluctuation make it more likely that women will feel worse than men, but the decrease in things like estrogen also increases the damage done through regular wear and tear, increasing the joint pain. For men on the other hand, estrogen is an excellent painkiller and since they tend to take it in medicinal form, there is no real fluctuation to adjust for.
Women are also more prone to joint pain in areas like the knees because they are more loose limbed and flexible, meaning that there is more strain and wear and tear on the body and thus more joint pain. Women also tend to bounce around between work, exercising too hard, and daily tasks which gives them the same level of joint pain stress as men who do much the same thing. The extra flexibility and limberness may be useful when it comes to things like sports or physical activities, but it also means that the cartilage in the knees rubs together more often and causes more damage.
Finally, women react differently to pain medications than men do. Pain killers take longer in a woman?s body than a man?s to work. This is because the female digestive tract is slower in the absorption of things like painkillers and furthermore, the hormone fluctuation means that painkillers are absorbed at different rates depending on what time of the month it is! All in all, it means dosages have to be adjusted or women simply have to put up with the fact that some days, the average painkiller will be slower than on other days.
Women have a hard time with joint pain and it?s largely because their own body works against them when it comes to pain. If you are suffering from joint pain, talk to your doctor and explore options that will be specific to your needs, not just generic painkillers and treatments that may not work as well in your situation. Joint pain is not something that has to be suffered all of the time; there are ways to handle it if you are willing to ask for the help. It?s very important to find this help because as a woman, your needs are going to be more specific, so make sure to get the help you need and take care of yourself!
