Bruises, rheumatism, migraines... for each of these daily hurts, these recalcitrant pains, there is an adapted plant.
Thanks to their anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties, they have no equivalent to come to the end of unpleasant sensations.
The pain circuit
To feel pain, we need a detector, a transmitter and an information analysis center. The detectors specialized in pain are called nociceptors.
They are distributed throughout the body, whether in the skin, muscles, joints or viscera.
They are actually specialized nerve endings that generate a chemical message and send it through a transmitter: the nerves.
The message can take the reflex route. It passes through the spinal cord to trigger, for example, the withdrawal of a hand that is burned without even thinking about it.
The message can also continue to the brain to alert it, and more particularly to the famous somato-sensory cortex.
The latter analyzes the message and perceives the painful sensation.
This center is close to the limbic system which corresponds to the center of emotions.
It is also close to the memory center which will remember that touching a flame can be painful.
This center is also close to the motor cortex, which is responsible for carrying out orders to relieve this pain.
1. CBD hemp and pain
CBD may help to reduce pain by acting on a variety of biological processes in the body.
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Ongoing research suggests CBD oil for pain can aid medical conditions, including arthritis and fibromyalgia, at varying doses.
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2. Arnica : a plant with multiple virtues
Among the anti-pain plants, arnica is perhaps the best known.
This plant, used since the Middle Ages, is in any case one of the most sold in pharmacy to treat knocks, bumps and other bruises to the soul.
Rheumatism: the benefits of thermal medicine
Arthritis, osteoarthritis, polyarthritis... more than 25% of French people suffer from rheumatism according to the French Society of Rheumatology (SFR).
To treat them, there are the classic treatments, often based on anti-inflammatory drugs.
But you should also think about plants to relieve painful joints.
In this sense, thermal medicine can be an effective natural solution. But how do these treatments work to reduce pain?
3. The daisy, the arnica of the plains
The analgesic and anti-inflammatory virtues of arnica have been known for centuries.
Today this small yellow plant is widely used by the pharmaceutical industry to make ointments.
Victim of its success, the mountain arnica is overexploited and could disappear.
A surprising alternative exists: the daisy! Explanations.
Often it is trampled on without even noticing it, but today botanical apprentices are more and more interested in the daisy.
The reason: the daisy would have many therapeutic properties.
These properties have been known for centuries. The daisy has very effective anti-inflammatory and anti-pain properties.
So much so that it is often compared to its mountain cousin, arnica.
And like arnica, daisy is used as an ointment that you can make yourself. To do this, pick a good handful of this small yellow and white flower.
The recipe is ancestral to look after the bruises, the torticolis or the sprains. It requires a particular ingredient: lard, i.e. pig fat.
To make your ointment, start by melting the lard in a pan. Then add the daisies once the lard starts to melt.
Add just enough lard to cover the daisies. Leave the preparation on the fire for five minutes, until the flowers release their active ingredients. Then let the preparation rest overnight.
After a night in the fridge, heat the mixture again and strain it. Add a handful of beeswax to moisturize the skin, a few drops of peppermint essential oil, a natural painkiller, and finally the essential oil of fine lavender for its soothing and relaxing scent.
All that remains is to let the ointment cool in a jar, then keep in a cool place. The ointment can be kept for about two and a half years.
So before you mow your lawn, think about all the little aches and pains of everyday life that daisies could save you.
3. White willow, the vegetable aspirin
Back pain, aches and pains, migraines, bruises... To treat these everyday ailments, there are different plants known for their pain-relieving effect.
Arnica for bumps, meadowsweet for tendonitis, peppermint for mouth ulcers or even partenelle for headaches...
Each one has its own specific analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties.
The white willow, sometimes called the vegetable aspirin, is recommended to relieve many pains because it presents properties similar to those of the aspirin.
Hippocrates and Dioscorides, two Greek physicians, used white willow to relieve pain.
Over the centuries, the tree became an effective analgesic treatment throughout the West.
In the 20th century, willow was still commonly used until the arrival of aspirin, which took its place in medicine cabinets.
Today, the white willow is still very present in the countryside and along the water, it is not uncommon to discover some: "The white willow is a tree that loves to have its feet in the water all year round.
In the white willow, we will use the leaves which are not very strong in active principle.
On the other hand, we can use the bark of the young branches where we find the most active principle.
And this active principle, which is painkiller, is called salicylic acid", explains Olivier Escuder, botanist.
To recover the bark rich in active principle, there is a technique: the debarking. To do this, simply use a peeler.
Recover the chips and dry them.
You can then use them in infusion or decoction. You can also find this pain-relieving plant in herbalist shops in two forms: the leaves and the bark.
"The white willow is the anti-pain plant par excellence, indicates Michel Pierre, herbalist, it will relieve all the inflammatory pains, arthritis, rheumatisms, osteoarthritis, the pains of rules.
It will relieve migraines, lumbar pains because there is an inflammatory process". And if its taste is too strong, add honey to soften it.
In case of strong pain, you can consume the willow for three weeks. But if the pain persists, it is better to consult a doctor.
4. Helichrysum, an immortal against blows
To treat hematomas, we all know arnica montana, but there is another plant that is much less known and yet very effective: Italian helichrysum.
Used in essential oil, it acts on blood circulation and treats bruises and contusions.
The yellow color is at the origin of the name helichrysum, which comes from two Greek words: helios which means the sun and chrysos which means gold.
Present in the Mediterranean basin, this perennial plant was discovered in Italy.
The perfect flowering of Helichrysum lasts only one week.
During this short period, the flowers are harvested to be transformed into essential oil. Initially noted for its beauty, it is its medicinal properties that make Helichrysum's reputation.
Helichrysum is in fact composed of a hundred different molecules. One of them is neryl acetate.
This molecule has anti-inflammatory properties and is used to treat bruises.
Once bottled, this essential oil can be found in pharmacies and herbalists. Helichrysum essential oil is mainly used to treat bruises.
"The essential oil of helichrysum stimulates in depth the functioning of the blood circulation.
It is necessary to put about ten drops on the part to be treated, it is applied with softness in light massage so that the essential oil manages to penetrate and that relieves immediately the hematoma", explains Michel Pierre, herbalist.
Helichrysum can be applied two to three times a day on the hematoma.
Thanks to its active ingredients, these sunny flowers can be used to treat other circulatory disorders such as varicose veins and couperose.
