Natural Pain Relief

Introduction.

With pain relief treatments like aspirin and ibuprofen again in the news due to the risk of causing stomach bleeding and kidney failure, more and more people are considering using natural pain killers instead of the ones you can buy from the major drug companies. Natural pain relief agents are frequently used alongside other health supplements and pain management techniques.

Natural pain relievers.

White Willow bark is probably the best known naturally occurring pain killer and you can read an article in vitaminsandsupplements dedicated to it. Cats claw is a natural pain relieving agent used by South Americans to treat wounds, stomach pains, arthritis pains and even provide relief to cancer sufferers. The active ingredient in cats claw  has the ability to increase the body’s immune system and inhibit inflammation. Whilst the boosting of the immune system inevitably will be of help to cancer sufferers the fact that it can also prevent and reduce inflammation will be its main claim to being an agent for pain relief, working similarly to the activity of ibuprofen. Similarly from down Mexico way is the use of cayenne and chilli, whose hotness derived from their capsaicinoids is actually the active pain killing ingredient. When applied to the skin the ‘capiscum‘ acts as a painkiller by depleting a component in nerve cells called substance P, reducing he transmission of pain impulses to the brain. Capsaicinoids are particularly effective in pain relief for arthritis and the ‘nerve’ pains associated with shingles.

If you’re depressed and suffering pain?

St John’s Wort is a natural health supplement used as a remedy for several conditions other than pain relief, most notably depression. As a naturally occurring substance it is also known to be particularly helpful as an agent for the relief of chronic pain. St John’s Wort is thought to act by enhancing brain levels at the neurotransmitter level, including serotonin.

He’ll be both depressed and in pain - having been knocked out by a cat!