I'm 47 and am going through perimenopause. I am experiencing night sweats as well as overall achiness and sometimes only in my arm, wrist and finger joints. I feel a bit more fatigued as well. I exercise regularly but I wonder if I shouldn't exercise at a high impact level any longer. I do both cardio and weight bearing exercises. Do I need to wind down with the exercising?

Joint aches and pains are very common in the menopause, falling oestrogen can affect the hydration of the joints causing inflammation and pain.

Exercise in the menopause is really important for all sorts of reasons but high impact exercise may irritate the joints further at this point. Look at other forms of keeping fit such as brisk walking, swimming, yoga etc. These will help to keep your fitness levels up but will not irritate the joints so much.

I would also suggest taking a combination of Glucosamine Sulphate with MSM and a fish oil supplement. These should help to stabilise/strengthen  and lubricate the joints.

Make sure that you also drink plenty of plain water every day and avoid, fizzy drinks, caffeine and alcohol as these can all compound the problem.

Eileen Durward