Opening Jars with Arthritic Hands
How to Open Jars or Bottles When You Have Arthritis
Strategies for coping with a problem faced by more and more aging baby boomers: hard-to-open lids and caps from jars and bottles that won't budge for arthritic hands.
More and more baby boomers feel joint pain every day. And they suddenly find themselves facing a basic dilemma their elders have dealt with for years: How to open jars or bottles when your fingers, knuckles, or wrists ache from arthritis.
Yes, it's a bummer! Yes, manufacturers could design and make jars and bottles that are easier to open.
But those lids and caps are tight for a good reason. It's a security measure, to help guard against food tampering. And the main reason caps and lids are tight is because the contents have been heat-sterilized, forming vacuums inside that hold the tops on incredibly tight.
Completely healthy young-adult hands and wrists are usually strong enough to twist them open. Add age and just a touch of arthritis, which bring with them weakness and pain, and suddenly those *!?#*!! jar lids and bottle caps won't budge.
Fret not. One or more of the following simple strategies or devices for opening jars with arthritic hands will help restore all the twisting power you need.
Get a grip. Lids can be slippery. Caps can be too small to grab securely. For a better grip, try these tricks:
- First, wipe the top thoroughly with a dry kitchen towel.
- If necessary, slip on a rubber kitchen glove to give your grip more traction, just like rubber-soled sneakers do when you're walking.
- Or look in kitchen supply stores or online for a rubberized jar- or bottle-opening device made just for this purpose.
- Other jar opener devices are made in the form of V-shaped handles that wedge securely onto a lid or cap, giving you a larger, more secure grip. There are also electric jar openers that make the job even easier.
Heat it up. Metal (and plastic) expands when heated. So, if a lid or cap won't budge:
- Hold it for about 15 seconds under hot running tap water.
- Wipe the cap or lid thoroughly dry before trying to twist it off, applying the strategies outlined above in "Get a grip," too.
Note, too, that the hot water may soften or loosen any sort of food residue that may, in effect, acting as a sort of glue that's also making the top stick.
Tap it. Many people swear by tapping to loosen a lid or cap. (Be very careful, though, that you don't break the glass container in the process.) Try one of these approaches:
- Hold the container securely, pointed down towards the kitchen counter at a 45-degree angle. Gently but firmly tap the lid or cap against the counter, partially rotating the container every few taps until you've tapped all along the circumference.
- For wide lids, some people completely invert the jar and tap the entire surface of the lid against the counter to loosen it.
Pry it. Another often-effective way to loosen a lid or cap is to pry up its edge slightly, which also breaks the vacuum's hold. To do so, try one of these techniques (again, being very careful not to break the glass—and also taking care to observe all necessary precautions when employing sharp or pointed instruments):
- If there's a sufficient gap between the bottom edge of the lid and the side of the container, insert the triangular pointed end of an old-fashioned "church key" can opener into the gap, with the point facing upward, hooking the point underneath the lid's edge (see photo). Then, gently press down on the handle to lever up the lids' edge of the lid slightly. You'll know it works if you hear a dull, gentle "thwup" sound from the release of the vacuum. If necessary, try again at another point around the lid's perimeter.
- For tighter lids or twist-off bottle caps, you may have to insert the tip of a very sturdy, blunt knife under the edge of the cap to pry upward. Again, be very careful when doing so.
Saw it. Some plastic and metal bottle caps, especially on sodas and juices, have ridge-sided caps attached by perforation to rings that remain around the bottle's neck when the cap has been removed. Removing a tight cap may sometimes be achieved by breaking the perforations. To do so (again, working very carefully):
- Find a small, sharp knife, preferably one with a serrated edge such as a steak knife.
- Use the knife, with its sharp tip and edges always pointed away from you and others, to saw very carefully and gently through the perforations connecting the ring and the cap.
Build your strength. Just because you have arthritis doesn't mean you can't still improve the strength and conditioning of your hands. Always consult first with your doctor, of course, but consider some of these strategies:
- Use a soft foam or rubber squeeze ball to keep your hands flexible and build up muscles.
- Consider taking the natural supplements glucosamine and chondroitin, often sold in combination, which have been found in some studies and much anecdotal evidence to help reduce joint inflammation and pain.
One of the above strategies, applied always with care and caution, should work. If not, consider changing to a brand whose packaging is friendlier towards arthritic hands!
