Could Estrogen Help Relieve Joint Pain?

The joint pain and swelling caused by arthritis can be debilitating, making activities that once seemed easy—like walking, biking, gardening, or dancing—almost too painful to manage. Joint pain due to osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis tends to be more common in women than in men, and different studies have offered clues as to why. Some studies have shown that arthritis can be caused or exacerbated by a loss or decline in estrogen levels. Although this decline is usually associated with age and menopause, estrogen levels can start falling for many other reasons as well. Noting the link between arthritis pain and the menopause-related decline in estrogen levels, researchers tested to see whether they could alleviate arthritis-related joint pain by boosting estrogen levels through hormone therapy. They found that estrogen therapy can help alleviate arthritis pain not only in joint cartilage but also in other tissues that arthritis commonly affects. Read more…