Norwegian researchers from University Hospital of North Norway (UNN), UiT Artic University of Norway, and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health have found that the more exercise someone does the higher their pain tolerance is. They conducted a study of more than 10,000 people with differing levels of exercise and found that those who are more physically active have a higher pain tolerance than those who are sedentary. Based on this conclusion, researchers then asked, “how could physical activity levels affect chronic pain later in life?” Based on their previous exercise and pain related research, they hypothesized that if someone was more active later in life, their chronic pain tolerance would be higher. By measuring pain tolerance with a series of cold bath tests over the course of 3 months, researchers “found that people who were more active in their free time had a lower chance of having various types of chronic pain.” Doctoral fellow Anders Arnes stated that “being just a little more active, such as going from light to moderate activity, was associated with a 5% lower risk of reporting some form of chronic pain later” and a 16% risk reduction for those with severe chronic pain. Even if you already have chronic pain, exercise can be a large help in reducing and managing that pain. Talk to your doctor about exercises that can aid your or a loved one’s pain management.
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