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will moving to a milder climate help?

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Posted 3/27/2011 4:35 AM (GMT -8)
it seems that my daughter's flares come with the change of season and last until the late spring -

does anyone know of a study or have any friends or relatives with uc that have moved and found relief in a different climate?

thanks
Posted 3/27/2011 7:32 AM (GMT -8)
I doubt moving to a different climate will have much of an impact on UC. We have people from all over the world who still flare. Even if you move to a place that doesn't change seasons as much, her body may then become accustomed to the new climate and the cycle may continue.
Posted 3/27/2011 7:44 AM (GMT -8)
I moved from a Mid-Atlantic state to Florida with no improvement in UC symptoms. We snowbirded for several years then made it permanent.

The one improvement it made was that I get a little more sunshine and natural Vitamin D through skin absorption in the winter months although many Floridians stay inside during the hot summers (not me so much). Florida has a lot more pollen also which can aggravate allergies. I've not been affected for many years but this spring the pollen was really strong. We are also having the most wonderful winter and spring in many many years.

The abundant sunshine also seems to help moods. This isn't something that affects me but people in my family have SAD (seasonal affective disorder) and Florida sunshine really makes their life better. And lastly the choice of where you live can decrease stress. We moved to a small town south of Sarasota on the west coast of Florida, low traffic, low stress. Now Miami or Orlando would stress me out, we won't even drive there if at all possible.
Posted 3/27/2011 8:29 AM (GMT -8)
I moved from NY to CA and I had a flare up right after moving. The weather here is much more mild. Some people see a difference but it hasn't had a positive impact on my condition.
Posted 3/27/2011 8:44 AM (GMT -8)
I moved from one of the coldest parts of N. America to a very mild climate and got UC. My joints and back feel better though.
Posted 3/27/2011 10:29 AM (GMT -8)
Although my flares are bacteria related. It is easier for me to get sick when the weather turns cold. My body has trouble retaining heat, always has, and I think the change of weather puts my body under stress. In fact, my first two flares started in the fall right at the time the weather started to change.
Posted 3/27/2011 5:04 PM (GMT -8)
Welcome back, rey! The forum has debated this issue in the past, and I don't recall any agreement with regard to climate change. I did find when I was a younger UCer that hot humid weather made my condition harder to deal with, whereas cold was more tolerable. Now that I'm older, I find sustained cold weather equally fatiguing. If one hits the right med or med combo, that enables the body to adjust to environmental conditions more like a healthy person does. Until I got on steady helpful medication I used to have flares in late spring that felt like flu coming on. But I would also agree with Imagardener that easing daily stress definitely makes UC more manageable over time. / Old Hat (30 yrs with left-sided UC; presently in remission taking brandname Colazal)
Posted 3/27/2011 7:40 PM (GMT -8)
I live in Hawaii and haven't been to the mainland during the winter since 1991, way before UC.
Anyway, I don't imagine the milder climate being all that helpful but, like I said, I've never had to compare my symptoms in colder climates.

We are in a pretty small town and have a GI practice with 4 doctors so we islanders are not without our GI issues.
Posted 3/28/2011 4:21 AM (GMT -8)
Thanks for the welcome Old Hat, good to see your status is well!

thanks to all for the answers, it's a piece of our puzzle i keep going back to.

rey
Posted 3/28/2011 4:17 PM (GMT -8)

rey said...
it seems that my daughter's flares come with the change of season and last until the late spring

Oh yes. Allergies, not just weather, can be a factor. So I got tested for allergies. It turned out that I didn't have any allergies to the plants in my area.

Although I would love to move to a warmer climate, I can't. So I make sure to keep warmer during the change in seasons. My boyfriend got me a heated mattress cover for our bed (it has dual controls). And I wear more layers.
Posted 3/28/2011 5:49 PM (GMT -8)
I moved from DC/VA to CA and saw a good improvement, on headaches, on UC. Don't think it's the weather as much as the change in people, attitude, lifestyle, which seem to be promoted better in warmer cities. I like to say, back east it was about the 9-5, here it's about the 5-9
Posted 3/28/2011 8:40 PM (GMT -8)
I moved from Vancouver to Honolulu for six month to avoid the winter this year. I was hoping for a big improvement. I didn't have a major flare, but I still had lots of UC symptoms. I made a point to get lots of sun for the vitamin D and I am on leave from my job so it is very low stress. Even though my UC is still active, I would live here permanently if I could. Hawaii is my paradise.
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