Best Herbs for Pain

“Pain is such an uncomfortable feeling that even a tiny amount of it is enough to ruin every enjoyment.” -Will Rogers. This saying cannot be bettered as any pain, physical or psychological can be a serious cause of concern. In this strenuous world, you find it hard to get away without any sort of a pain. Today headache, body ache, stomachache, and various other kinds of aches have become a daily-life routine, which was almost unheard of, say, thirty years back. This might be the reason why aspirin always wins the deal. For most of us, it has become more like a routine to gulp at least three tablets of aspirin every day. In the fast-paced life where stopping to take a breather is considered a heinous crime, pain makes one incapacitated and thus one reaches for painkiller medicines to fix it. Scientifically speaking, pain occurs when the sensitive nerve endings in your body become irritated. This generally happens when tissue swells out because of various reasons from a bruise to muscle tension and even hormonal imbalance. However, it is not feasible, not to say, advisable to find relief in drugs that gives a solace from pain. You can get a better remedy in natural medicines, which have good anti-inflammatory properties. Given here are the names and properties of such herbal medicines.

 

 

Willow Bark And Meadowsweet 

The magic ingredient that these two herbs have is salicin, which gets converted into salicylic acid, which in turn decreases pain by reducing the levels of pain-producing prostaglandins. Two cups of tea or 30 to 40 drops of willow bark or meadowsweet tincture in water usually does the trick. Ironically, it turns out that these natural aspirins are far less irritating to your stomach than the synthetic drug.

 

Ginger 

Another herb that reduces pain is ginger, which has long been used in India to treat inflammation and pain. When Indian researchers investigated on the properties of ginger, they discovered that it did indeed relieve pain. And ginger actually does a double-duty as in addition to relieving pain, it also brings more blood to the injured, inflamed area.

 

Pineapple 

The enzyme bromelain, from the stem of the pineapple is also effective in inhibiting prostaglandins. Inflammations as a result of surgery, traumatic injuries, and wounds have shown excellent improvement when treated with  bromelain.

 

Bupleurum, Ginseng And Licorice 

All three of these herbs stimulate the pituitary and adrenal glands to increase natural production of adrenal hormones such as cortisone that reduce the inflammation and consequent pain caused by conditions such as arthritis. Bupleurum and ginseng reduce adrenal shrinkage. Studies have shown that licorice prevents the side effects of cortisone such as depression, thymus atrophy, high cholesterol and decreased levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin and the pituitary hormone ACTH. Licorice also stops the liver from breaking down and deactivating your body's natural cortisone too quickly. Licorice has been proved effective in helping people with arthritis when taken internally.

 

Evening Primrose, Borage And Black Currant Oils 

Gamma Linoleic Acid (GLA) found in these can reduce inflammation, boost immunity, and help maintain cell membranes in painful inflammatory disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis. It also improved the symptoms of joint tenderness and swelling in those who took it daily for six months. 

Cat's Claw
It not only enhances the functioning of the immune system, but also has been found to reduce inflammation and contains anti-arthritic compounds. 

Echinacea 

It has got anti-inflammatory properties that are a protection against arthritis.

 

Guggul 

A resin from a relative of the myrrh tree, it has long been used as a medicine to fight pain resulting from inflammation. A significant relief from arthritic pain can be obtained after three months of using a traditional Indian combination of guggul, turmeric, withania and the mineral zinc.

Curcumin
Curcumin has been shown to be as effective as cortisone and phenylbutazone in decreasing inflammation, which is the coloring substance for turmeric. Curcumin contains pain relievers that stop the neurotransmitter substance from sending its pain signals to the brain. It decreases inflammation also by reducing prostaglandin activity. Curcumin increases cortisone's anti-inflammatory action by making the body more sensitive to this hormone.

 

Chinese Skullcap
Chinese skullcap is known for its sedative action and ability to stabilize nerve-related heart problems with their anti-inflammatory properties. As is true of most pain relievers, the reasons for the effectiveness of Chinese skullcap are not well understood. 

Devil's Claw
Devil's claw is so called because of the shape, which resembles a claw-like hand and has a long history of use for arthritis, rheumatic diseases, lower back pain, and other inflammatory disorders.