Green Pharmacy for Pain

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Green Pharmacy for Pain

 

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.

 

http://www.mothernature.com/Library/Bookshelf/Books/41/91.cfm

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