The weather and your health

I write this note on Tuesday, March 10, 1009, and we've been through some wide swings of weather over the past few days...from hot and dry to bursts of snow and cold (sometimes on the same day).

So...how do you feel? Tired, cranky, achy, unfocused? (I know that the change to Daylight Saving Time may play a role here, but let's leave that for another post).

It could be the connection between the weather and your health. Ever since Hippocrates, scientists and physicians have been registering the connections between weather conditions and your general health, and changes in pressure often come to the top of the list as triggers for many of the things you may be feeling...if you're sensitive to them.

The pressure HAS been changing dramatically from day-to-day; falling in advance of the latest surge of cold air or wintry conditions; rising behind them. Again, if you're sensitive to changes in pressure, you may be feeling the effects...so what can you do?

Now, I'm not a doctor (and don't even play one on TV), but realizing what's going on is the first step, making sure you get some sunshine and fresh air won't hurt, and get all of the sleep you can will move you in the right direction.

Once we get through the typical Spring-like changeable weather and settle into our Summer pattern, it should be a big help in getting you feeling like you again.

To see how serious some European countries get about the way the weather affects your health, you might peek at www.donnerwetter.de and click on "biowetter". Speaking a little German will help, and the forecasts are only for how conditions will affect people in different parts of Germany, but it will show you how seriously some take "the weather connection"