The Green Pharmacy for Pain

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The " G. reen Pharmacy " for Pain JoAnn Guest Aug 04, 2005

12:37 PDT

 

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The worst pain I ever had was caused by a slipped disk. It was just like

the pain I'd experienced from time to time with gout--unbearable. My

doctor did what doctors do: He gave me potentially addictive pain pills

and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. I took more drugs for that

slipped disk than I'd ever taken in my life. I also took more herbs than

I'd ever previously taken, trying to minimize the side effects of the

pharmaceuticals.

 

Doctors recognize two kinds of pain, acute and chronic. Acute pain comes

on suddenly, typically subsides with time and usually is alleviated with

common pain relievers. Examples would be a headache or the pain of an

injury. Chronic pain may begin as acute pain, but it lasts much

longer--months or even years--and often cannot be relieved using

standard therapies. Those with chronic pain often wind up in a personal

hell. Their pain can make them depressed, and with depression the pain

may become worse and be more

difficult to treat.

 

If you have persistent pain, see a doctor for a diagnosis. Once the

cause has been figured out, rational treatment becomes possible. But if,

like many people who have chronic pain, you don't get a clear diagnosis

and your pain goes on and on, I'd suggest consulting a pain clinic.

These medical clinics, which are relative newcomers to the health-care

scene, use a variety of drugs and alternative approaches to help you

control your pain even if you can't completely eliminate it. Among the

alternative approaches used in some pain clinics are exercise,

meditation and biofeedback.

 

Green Pharmacy for Pain

 

There are also a number of herbs that can help.

 

Clove (Syzygium aromaticum). Dentists around the country recommend clove

oil as first aid for toothache, and in fact, it's what my mother used to

give me for toothache. It works, and its use is endorsed by Commission

E, the group that advises the German gonvernment on herbal medicine. You

apply this oil directly to the painful tooth.

 

Red pepper (Capsicum, various species). Red pepper contains

pain-relieving salicylates, chemicals that are similar to salicin, the

herbal equivalent of aspirin. In fact, red pepper once ranked as the

best food-grade source of salicylates, although a new study has

downgraded it considerably. This herb also contains capsaicin, a

compound that stimulates the release of the body's natural painkillers,

called endorphins.

 

Some folks like the spicy taste of red pepper. I know I do. I suggest

using more of this wonderful spice in your cooking.

 

Capsaicin also works when used externally by interfering with substance

P, a pain transmitter in the skin. So many studies have shown benefits

from applying capsaicin externally that the Food and Drug Administration

approved pain-relieving skin creams containing 0.025 percent capsaicin

(Zostrix, Capzasin-P) for the treatment of arthritis and rheumatism. (If

you use a capsaicin cream, be sure to wash your hands thoroughly

afterward: You don't want to get it in your eyes. Also, since some

people are quite sensitive to this compound, you should test it on a

small area of skin to make sure that it's okay for you to use before

using it on a larger area. If it seems to irritate your skin,

discontinue use.)

 

Willow (Salix, various species). Willow bark contains salicin. In fact,

most plants contain some salicin or related salicylates. Just 100 years

ago, aspirin was derived from several plants that contain more of these

compounds than most: willow, meadowsweet and wintergreen. When medicines

have been in short supply during wartime, doctors in some countries have

successfully gone back to using willow bark for pain relief.

 

Commission E recognizes willow bark as an effective pain reliever for

everything from headache to arthritis.

 

For many kinds of pain relief, I'd start with about a half-teaspoon of

salicin-rich willow bark or up to as much as five teaspoons of white

willow (S. alba), which has a lower salicin concentration. Of course,

not everyone knows which species they have, and salicin content varies

from species to species. So I'd suggest starting with a low-dose tea and

working your way up to a dose that provides effective pain relief.

 

If you're allergic to aspirin, you probably shouldn't take aspirin-like

herbs, either. Also, you should not give either aspirin or its natural

herbal alternatives to children who have pain with viral infections such

as colds or flu. There's a chance that they might develop Reye's

syndrome, a potentially fatal condition that damages the liver and

brain.

 

Evening primrose (Oenothera biennis). This herb is one of our best

sources of the amino acid tryptophan. In studies, tryptophan supplements

have reduced pain caused by acute and chronic illness and also increased

people's ability to tolerate pain. Naturopaths often recommend taking

one gram of evening primrose oil four times a day to relieve the pain

and nerve damage of diabetic neuropathy, a particularly painful

condition that sometimes develops in people with diabetes. I'd suggest

taking powdered seeds instead, because evening primrose loses much of

its tryptophan in the oil-extraction process.

 

Ginger (Zingiber officinale). Few people think of ginger as a pain

reliever, but it is. In one study, researchers recruited 56 people--28

with rheumatoid arthritis, 18 with osteoarthritis and 10 with the

painful muscle condition fibromyalgia--and gave them two to four

teaspoons of powdered ginger a day. After three months, more than 75

percent reported significant pain relief with no side effects.

 

You can also use ginger externally. Hot ginger compresses seem to help

relieve abdominal cramps, headache and joint stiffness. I'd suggest

adding hot pepper to these compresses.

 

Kava kava (Piper methysticum). This tropical herb contains two

pain-relieving chemicals, dihydrokavain and dihydromethysticin, which

have analgesic effectiveness comparable to that of aspirin. Although

kava kava has been described as a narcotic, it is nonaddictive. When you

chew the leaf, your mouth goes numb. As a result, this plant might be

used to relieve the painful symptoms of sore throat, sore gums, canker

sores or even toothache.

 

Lavender (Lavandula, various species). Lavender oil is aromatherapy's

top treatment for pain, and in fact, this oil was in on the ground floor

of aromatherapy's beginnings. In the 1920s, aromatherapy's founder,

French perfume chemist René-Maurice Gattefossé, happened to burn his

hand in a laboratory accident. Plunging his hand into the nearest cool

liquid, lavender oil, Gattefossé experienced rapid relief. Since then,

researchers have discovered that some essential oils reduce the flow of

nerve impulses, including those that transmit pain. In lavender oil, the

key constituents appear to be linalool and linalyl aldehyde.

 

You can mix a few drops of lavender oil in a tablespoon of vegetable oil

and massage it into the painful area.

 

Mountain mint (Pycnanthemum muticum). This herb is high in pulegone, a

chemical similar to capsaicin that also has pain-relieving effects. I

suggest making a tasty tea, then using the spent leaves (or fresh ones)

as a poultice on painful areas. (Don't use this treatment if you are

pregnant, however.)

 

 

Analgetea

 

Here's a pain-relieving herbal blend to keep on hand: willow bark, red

pepper, cloves, ginger, peppermint and mountain mint. Just mix whichever

of these herbs are available in proportions that appeal to your taste.

You can use this mixture to make a tea whenever you feel the need, or

you can make a poultice to apply directly to painful areas.

 

 

 

Peppermint (Mentha piperita). Menthol, the active constituent in

peppermint, has anesthetic effects. In one study, scientists asked 32

people who had headaches to massage tincture of peppermint oil on their

temples. This had significant pain-relieving effects. But if you try

peppermint oil, be sure to dilute it by adding a few drops to a couple

of tablespoons of any vegetable oil. Pure peppermint oil can be

irritating to the skin. And never ingest the oil; a very small amount

can be toxic.

 

Sunflower (Helianthus annuus). Sunflower seeds are among the best

sources of phenylalanine, a chemical involved in pain control. Studies

suggest that phenylalanine helps reduce pain by inhibiting the breakdown

of enkephalins, chemicals involved in pain perception. In studies with

both humans and animals, phenylalanine makes acupuncture more effective

at reducing pain. In laboratory rats, the chemical enhanced the effect

of morphine and made it last longer.

 

If I were in pain, I'd eat a handful of sunflower seeds--I'm a habitual

seed muncher anyhow--and use ground seeds in a poultice on painful

areas.

 

Turmeric (Curcuma longa). Many clinical studies agree that the curcumin

in turmeric has anti-inflammatory effects, including a significant

beneficial effect in relieving rheumatoid arthritis. But it takes more

than a shake of the spice jar to gain this benefit. The dose naturopaths

recommend is 400 milligrams three times a day. To get that much, you'd

have to consume at least one-third of an ounce of this herb. So if you'd

like to try turmeric for pain, I'd suggest taking capsules, even if you

have to make your own. (Empty gelatin capsules can be purchased at

health food stores.)

 

Eucalyptus (Eucalyptus globulus). Aromatherapists often suggest adding

eucalyptus oil to the pain-relieving essential oils of lavender and

peppermint. The compound cineole, which is found in eucalyptus, speeds

absorption of the other aromatic pain relievers through the skin.

Remember, though, that these oils are best reserved for external use

only.

 

Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis). Commission E recommends using two to

three teaspoons of dried rosemary to make a cup of pain-relieving tea.

For a bath that will certainly relax you and may provide pain relief,

fill a cloth bag with two ounces of rosemary and toss it into your

bathwater.

 

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