Sustainable Living & Sustainable Lifestyle
Your kitchen may hold the secrets to natural pain relief, not your medicine cabinet.
Your kitchen may hold the secrets to natural pain relief, not your medicine cabinet.
Bumps, bruises, aches and pains, we all get them and we all want them to go away as quickly as possible. Natural pain relief choices are a growing trend among those working towards a sustainable living and a healthy alternative to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). If you have ever taken an aspirin or ibuprofen for a headache then you have taken an NSAID, which pose certain health risks. Medical studies have found that NSAIDs are linked to gastrointestinal bleeding, kidney damage and even heart attack, providing more reason to explore natural choices for pain relief.
Natural choices in pain relief or herbal remedies have been in use for centuries, in fact many of your ancestors likely used them. Many of the common pain relief remedies may be right in your own kitchen. Cooking ingredients and spices such as turmeric, ginger and capsaicin are some of the more potent pain fighters. Before discussing each of these options, we do want to ensure you use caution when trying herbal therapies for pain relief. Many have not thoroughly been researched and everybody can react differently. The best course of action is to talk to a health-care professional before testing out an herbal remedy.
Turmeric is proving to be a powerful ally in the fight against aches and pains. The active ingredient is curcumin which is what gives curry that distinct yellowish color. Turmeric is a strong anti-inflammatory and it can be purchased as capsules in a health food stores. We recommend that you just purchase the spice and add it to your food, the most natural way to use it. Keep in mind that this spice can increase your risk of bleeding when taken with blood thinners.
Capsaicin is found in hot chili peppers and is what gives them that spicy taste. It has been proven to be effective when used topically or on your skin, taking care of minor pains associated with arthritis. It can take a couple of days to become effective so don’t give up after a single use.
Ginger is one of the power herbs; it has been a major component of Chinese medicine for centuries and is still coveted in many Asian countries today. Ginger provides natural pain relief with its anti-inflammatory compounds, phytochemicals known as gingerols. It has also been shown to be very effective with nausea and other digestive related illnesses. Similar to Turmeric, it is available in capsule form though to reduce packaging and processing we recommend adding to your food naturally.
We have only scratched the surface of natural pain relief options; the herbal remedies above are a good place to start when you have aches and pains. Talking with your doctor or pharmacist about your desire to try organic and natural options will likely open the door to additional options. Natural pain relief remedies are just another way to prove that going green doesn’t have to hurt.
Image: m_bartosch
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