Many of us older folks have joint and back aches and pains and many will swear that they get worse with certain weather conditions.

Yet, according to a recent study conducted by researchers at the Harvard Medical School, they say there is no correlation between increased joint and back pain and the weather.

However, after looking at their method of studying, I can say, as a scientist myself, that they have made a gross error that has resulted in a totally bogus conclusion. Here is what they did and what they concluded and then I will debunk it.

“Some people say their joint or back pain changes with the weather, but a new study finds no link between achy joints and rainfall patterns.”

“The study analyzed Medicare insurance claims from more than 1.5 million Americans ages 65 and older, along with daily rainfall data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Using the insurance claims, the researchers looked at the number of patient visits to doctors for joint or back pain on rainy days versus nonrainy days.”

“They found that, out of the more than 11 million patient visits overall, the percentage of visits for joint and back pain was similar on rainy days and nonrainy days. Specifically, 6.35 percent of office visits on rainy days included reports of joint and back pain, while 6.39 percent of office visits on nonrainy days included reports of joint and back pain.”

To begin with, many people with chronic pain that feel an increase of pain during certain types of weather DON’T go running to the doctor every time it happens.

Secondly, they only looked at rain patterns and nothing else, which means they cannot make a blanket statement about weather in general. What about changes in barometric pressure when different types of weather fronts move through an area or changes in humidity or dew point?

I have two very bad knees that have hurt 24/7 since I was 17 and I’m now 66. I also have 11 of my 23 spinal discs damaged, along with arthritis in both thumbs. My family will attest that I accurately predict changes in weather, regardless if there is any rain. I can feel any significant change in barometric pressure and changes in humidity and dew points.

The last couple of times I went back to visit family in Arizona, I didn’t ache nearly as much as I do living in northern Kentucky, where it is a lot more humid. Within 24 hours of returning home, it seemed like my whole body began to ache and throb and it was due to the humidity, not rain.

I also notice a difference in aches and pains with temperature changes. The hotter and drier it is, the less I ache and throb, but the colder or more humid it is, trust me, I feel it big time.

My oldest daughter was given anti-cancer drugs that ate away most of the cartilage in her knees and some in her ankles. When we have changes in pressure or humidity, she can also feel it in her knees and ankles. There are times her knees hurt so bad that she can’t hardly walk upstairs. Big drops in barometric pressure also give her intense headaches.

I have a number of friends who also have health conditions where they experience more pain with changes in barometric pressure and humidity.

One would expect researchers from Harvard Medical School to know how to conduct a thorough study on weather affecting joints and back, but they obviously didn’t have a clue about what they were doing and they definitely didn’t have enough good evidence to quantify their blanket statement about weather in general. They need to go back to school to learn how to conduct a thorough and proper scientific study, because they majorly failed this one and if they were my students, I would have failed them on such a terrible job.