Managing Pain and Discomfort with Arthritis Creams

People that struggle with arthritis cannot help but seek out solutions that offer relief for pain and discomfort. The afflicted joints can flare up, especially during cold and humid weather. To this end, most people turn to arthritis creams for immediate and temporary relief. That said, these creams contain therapeutic ingredients and must be used with care to avoid any adverse reactions.

In this post, we take a good look at how arthritis creams work and what people ought to know before using one. Only then can you expect to use the latter safely and effectively.

So how do arthritis creams work?

What most people don’t know about arthritis pain relief creams is that they are generally classified into two types — hot creams and cold creams. It is essential to note the difference because certain kinds of arthritis respond to one kind of cream and can worsen with the other.

For example, if you have rheumatoid arthritis, then much of your pain and discomfort stems from the inflammation and swelling on the joints. Hence, the last thing you would want to do is use a hot arthritis cream that only increases the temperature in the joints, which only leads to more pain and stiffness. In this case, the use of a cold arthritis cream is appropriate.

On the other hand, hot creams are suitable for people that suffer from osteoarthritis, which occurs as a result of the joints losing cartilage density. Such a condition progresses over a long period and further aggravated by repetitive joint movement.  In this case, a hot cream that warms and soothes the joints will certainly help.

As you might have already realised, choosing the best arthritis cream in the market is a matter of selecting the right type that suits your condition. Choosing the wrong type can make things worse. It is safe to say that most cases of people stating that they didn’t find any relief out of arthritis creams were likely using the wrong type that doesn’t go well with their condition.

Precautions for using arthritis cream

Of course, the best way to determine whether or not a type of arthritis cream is suitable for your condition is to arrange a consultation with your doctor. More importantly, patients who are on certain drug medications should always talk to their doctor before adding the use of arthritis creams to their routine. Doing so will ensure that your body won’t have any adverse reaction to the active ingredients on the arthritis cream.

In conclusion, the use of arthritis creams is not as straightforward as most people think. As you may have already realised, there are factors to consider, including the nature of arthritis symptoms and matching them with the right type of pain relief cream. While it may seem like a hassle to anyone who seeks immediate relief, keeping the factors mentioned above on top of mind will help ensure that you are getting the value of whatever amount of time and money you spend on arthritis creams.