Natural Pain Relief Alternatives to NSAIDs

Many of us have heard of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAIDs) before. Actually most of us have probably used them at one time or another. They are one of the most commonly used over the counter drugs. The most common types are aspirin, ibuprofen, motrin, alieve, acetaminophen (Tylenol, technically not an NSAID but an OTC pain med) and Celebrex. They are most commonly used for headaches, reducing fevers, inflammation, muscle injuries, joint pain, arthritis and menstrual cramps. What if there were natural alternatives and home remedies to NSAIDs? There are many herbs, homeopathic remedies, minerals and lifestyle changes that have been shown to reduce pain and inflammation. I’m going to share with you my favorites a little later.

The definition of an NSAID is a “class of drugs that provides analgesic and antipyretic (fever-reducing) effects, and, in higher doses, anti-inflammatory effects. The term nonsteroidal distinguishes these drugs from steroids, which, among a broad range of other effects, have a similar eicosanoid-depressing, anti-inflammatory action. As analgesics, NSAIDs are unusual in that they are non-narcotic and thus are used as non-addictive alternatives to narcotics. “ –Wikipedia

How do they work?

Before I get into exactly how they work I want to explain a few scientific processes and give a few definitions.

1. Prostaglandins: NSAIDs decrease the production of prostaglandins. A prostaglandin causes inflammation, fever and pain. It’s an enzyme that is produced by the body’s cells. COX enzymes produce prostaglandins and NSAIDs block the COX enzymes from being produced. There are two types of COX enzymes and they have very different functions. COX-1 and COX-2.
2. COX-1 Enzyme: The COX-1 enzyme is responsible for producing prostaglandins that activate platelets and activate the stomach lining. COX-1 actually protects the stomach from becoming damaged by the stomach acid. COX-1 also helps the kidneys excrete water. This enzyme actually has very little to do with the inflammation and pain that we experience. The enzyme responsible for pain and inflammation is COX-2.
3. COX-2 Enzyme: The COX-2 enzyme are found in the white blood cells and are responsible for the pain and inflammation that we feel. COX-2 is stimulated by an immune response and the production is stimulated by inflammatory cytokines. COX-2 contributes to swelling, pain and heat. Think about it this way… imagine you took a big bite out of an extremely spicy pepper. Your bite included the seeds and the ribs, all the heat containing parts! Think about what will happen to your body—you will start feeling really hot (maybe a bead or two of sweat will start to form on your brow), you will feel pain in your mouth and you will probably start to feel swelling on your lips because of the intense heat. That is what is going on inside of your body when COX-2 releases.

NSAIDs work by blocking the effects of both the COX-1 and COX-2 enzymes. If you block those enzymes you will block your body from producing the prostaglandins. That means you will not have as much pain and swelling. It is also able to reduce “heat” aka a fever.

A good example of how an NSAID works is to think about a house. This is a big house with many rooms. In one of the bedrooms upstairs there are 3 candles burning. One spills over and starts a piece of paper on the dresser on fire. You notice that happening and pick up the phone to call every fire truck in a 20-mile vicinity to put out this small fire in the home. They all come and start spraying the entire house with all of their fire hoses. Does this make sense? You may be thinking… that’s a little unnecessary. All you needed to do was walk to the candle and burning corner of the paper and blow out the flame. Why call the entire fire team? That’s exactly how an NSAID works. When you take one of those pills it sends the whole fire team into the scene and blocks all COX-1 and COX-2 enzymes. It can’t tell the difference between the two. By choosing a natural pain reliever you are in control of only isolating a specific flame. Or to use our example, blowing out a candle instead of spraying your whole house with water from fire hoses.

Blocking both COX-1 and COX-2 enzymes come with side effects. Whenever we take something that unnaturally blocks a process our body was created to do has side effects.

Side Effects of NSAIDs

Without getting into this too deeply, I want you to know that there are side effects to taking NSAIDs. If you take one here and there for a very extreme case of pain, our bodies can and will recover. Our bodies were created to be powerful and resilient, so I want to be clear that I’m not saying never use one again. But I want you to have the knowledge of some potential side effects. And I believe that the side effects of NSAIDs outweigh the benefits and believe that finding a natural alternative that works for your body is the superior way to go.

Side Effects:

• Headache
• Nausea
• Skin Rash
• Dizziness
• Decreased appetite
• Stomach ulcers and bleeding: because of the blocking of the COX-1 enzyme you can leave your stomach vulnerable because you are not producing the mucus needed to protect the stomach lining. This can happen with constant use of NSAIDs.

Inflammation: Acute or Chronic?

There is a difference between acute and chronic Inflammation. Acute would be like dropping a bowling ball on your food (ouch!) or getting a tooth extracted (double ouch!). It’s an event or injury that happens and your body sends inflammation into your tissues and cells to help heal. The healing happens within a few days or weeks and then the inflammation reduces and eventually stops. Other examples of acute inflammation include an insect bite, sunburn, sprained ankle and a viral infection. Our bodies were created for this type of inflammation. Chronic inflammation is a different story. We have an epidemic of chronic inflammation. Time Magazine called inflammation “The Silent Killer”. Chronic inflammation can come from many sources. For example:

• An extremely stressful job
• Other sources of extreme mental stress
• Lack of sleep
• A diet full of sugars, bad fats and toxins
• Toxic burdens on the body

My examples of natural pain relievers are meant to affect acute inflammation. The cause of chronic inflammation should be explored further to find out why you are having chronic inflammation. You may be able to get some relief from pain and inflammation from these natural remedies and I encourage you to do that. But the most important thing is figuring out why you are in a state of chronic inflammation.

Natural Alternatives to NSAIDs

Herbs and Homeopathic Remedies

Turmeric (Curcumin)

Turmeric is a spice and the active anti-inflammatory ingredient in turmeric is curcumin. Turmeric is a yellow/ orange spice and used a lot in Asian cooking. Curcumin is shown in many research studies to help with pain of osteoarthritis as well as by affecting many different inflammatory modulators. It can be used after a fall, sprained joint, or any other area of pain. Curcumin relives inflammation, pain and heat. (Does that sound familiar from when we talked about prostaglandin and COX enzymes?) It can actually inhibit the COX-2 enzyme. That’s the same thing that an NSAID does, but without any specificity to the type of COX enzyme and type of inflammation. Turmeric is specific to being a COX-2 inhibitor and can be used safely for pain reduction.

Turmeric can be taken internally for pain relief. My favorite uses are to grind fresh turmeric and add it to green tea or a green juice. You can also mix equal parts turmeric (made into a paste) and coconut oil and take it on a spoonful as a supplement. I would not rub the turmeric paste on the skin only because turmeric will stain anything it touches. You can also juice turmeric or add it to one of your green smoothies. Once again, watch out for the staining yellow/ orange color. You can also purchase curcumin or turmeric in capsule form and take it easily in that form too.

Arnica

Arnica is a flowing plant that looks similar to a small sunflower and has yellow petals. The roots and flowers are used to make arnica products. If you know anything about arnica you know that it comes in many forms. The most common use of arnica is in a homeopathic remedy. Arnica comes in homeopathic gels, creams, pellets and tinctures. I have know many people who use arnica cream or take the pellets and have more significant pain relief than from taking an NSAID. Arnica can also be found as an oil and can be used in homemade pain relieving creams.

Arnica can be used for muscle pain, cramps, joint pain and has also been shown to be successful in relieving pain from osteoarthritis. For kids, arnica can work well to relieve growing pains. Arnica is very powerful and can have side effects if not used properly. If taking internally only use the homeopathic versions. The arnica oil is for external use only and can be put on the skin safely in a cream or salve.

Traumeel

Traumeel is a homeopathic blend of 12 different ingredients and is best used in joint pain and muscle pain.

Traumeel comes in many forms.

• Traumeel ointment is great for massaging purposes
• Traumeel gel is great for athletes and individuals who are physically active
• Traumeel oral drops
• Traumeel tablets are easy to take with you for pain relief

Magnesium

Magnesium is a mineral that is involved in a multitude of our cellular functions. One thing is does is modulate the inflammatory response. It is said that much of us are magnesium deficient. Magnesium deficiencies can actually feed the fire of inflammation and pain and without enough magnesium you can’t put that fire out as easily. Magnesium helps in calming down the inflammatory response. I could write an entire article all about magnesium, but I won’t get into it all now.

Magnesium-deficient rats develop a generalized inflammation.

-Dr. Sophie Begona

My favorite way to absorb magnesium is through an Epsom Salt Bath. Also known as a detox bath or magnesium bath. You fill the tub up with hot water, or as hot as you can handle it. If the bath is for a child, the temperature will be warm. For children use 1 cup of Epsom salts per bath and for adults use 2 cups of Epsom salts per bath. Stay in the bath for 20 minutes to fully absorb the magnesium.

You can also get sufficient doses of magnesium through magnesium oil. It is called an “oil” because when you spray it on your skin it will feel oily, but the oil actually only contains magnesium chloride and water. For children, spray each arm and leg with 3 sprays (12 sprays total). For adults, double the children’s dose using 6 sprays on each arm and leg (24 sprays total). You will let the magnesium oil sit on your skin until it starts to look white and feel almost like salt on your skin. You can wash it off with a washcloth, apply lotion or just leave it. If the magnesium oil starts to tingle, rub a little lotion or coconut oil on your skin and that should take care of the tingling.

Foods

Reducing (or Eliminating) Sugars and Grains

We have a saying at our chiropractic office: “Sugar and grain cause pain”. I have seen it time and time again. We always have the most people in pain around the holidays (can you say sugar rush!!). Another thing I commonly see in today’s high grain/sugar consumption is people who are so inflamed they are not responding well to their chiropractic adjustment. Those people have to get on an anti-inflammatory diet to see changes. Our food choices are very powerful for building health or building symptoms! This applies to both adults and children. So many people think just because their child doesn’t have pain or are not overweight means they don’t have to watch their diet. Reducing inflammation is so crucial in little bodies too! (Inflammation Article)

My sugar-reducing tips:

• Get rid of the refined sugars and stick to sweeteners that come from nature
• Eat naturally sweet foods like fruit
• Make desserts made with natural sugars and keep the amount of the sweetener low
• If you have a very high level of inflammation throughout the body, eliminating all grains may be the best next step. Grains can turn to sugar in our bodies very quickly
• Keep your gluten-free, sprouted and ancient grain consumption low. The more grains we eat equals a higher chance for more inflammation
•  Listen to your body! Each person has a different inflammatory response and sensitivity to sugars and grains

Increasing healthy fats and Omega-3 fatty acids

Another way to counteract inflammation via diet is to increase your intake of healthy fats. The macronutrient that should be the highest in our diet is fats. Our brains are 60% fat, our nerves and nervous system is coated in fat and our cell membranes (all 10 trillion of them) have two layers of fat. One property in body that is healing at the highest level is a healthy level of dietary fat. But there is a difference between a good-fat and a bad-fat. (Saturated Fat Article)

Good Fats to Increase

• Coconut Oil
• Butter
• Olive Oil
• Grapeseed Oil
• Animal fats (tallow, lard, schmaltz)
• Nuts/ Seeds
• Nut and seed butter
• Free-range eggs
• Grass-fed beef and grass-fed organ meats
• Free-range chicken and turkey
• Avocados
• Whole-milk grass-fed raw dairy products
• Coconut products (coconut milk, shredded coconut, coconut butter)

Chiropractic Care

I am a chiropractor so I have to say this, right? I’m joking about that comment but not joking about the effect of chiropractic adjustments on pain. Misalignments of the spine, called subluxations, create pain by inflaming the area around the nerve, causing heat. That inflammation will reduce the communication from the brain to wherever that nerve goes. It could be a specific muscle, an organ or a gland. That means that chiropractic care goes way beyond just pain. But it is very helpful in decreasing pain and inflammation levels. An adjustment gets that joint functioning properly which leads to a re-start of the nervous system, decreased pressure on the nerve and a much higher level of healing. An adjustment can decrease and eliminate pain. An adjustment to the upper neck reduces inflammation because the most inflammatory receptors are in the upper neck. I see it on a daily basis! And because of that (and all of chiropractic’s other benefits) I choose to get adjusted 1-2x per week and will for the rest of my life. Chiropractic care is also amazing for infants children whether they are in pain or not. It can allow their bodies to heal any pain they have but most importantly can prevent future body pain and increase the healing power and potential in their bodies.

(Featured Image Credit)