Daily HealthBeat Tip

Hurts when you�re heavy

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I�m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Researchers say being obese seems to make people more sensitive to pain.

Charles Emery of Ohio State University looked at obese and non-obese men and women with osteoarthritis. He presented his findings at a meeting of the American Psychosomatic Society. The study was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Emery created pain in a calf nerve and measured the response in a nearby muscle. The response came earlier in the obese people. But they didn�t report more pain, so Emery suspects the obese may not be as aware of pain � something they should keep in mind.

Emery also taught both groups ways to cope with pain, including muscle relaxation.

"We are having individuals successively tense and relax various muscle groups, going from head to toe. That�s a commonly used procedure for relaxation." (nine seconds)

He says it worked.

Learn more at www.hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I'm Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: April 27, 2006

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