Joint pain can be a debilitating health problem that limits your range of motion and takes away your ability to do your favorite things, such as exercise or taking walks along the beach. The good news is the mainstream medical solutions of narcotic painkillers or surgery aren’t the only ways to a cure.
The following remedies are proven to provide great joint pain relief, and are safe and non-habit-forming. They also are easy to use. Look over these fifteen remedies – they can relieve your pain for a fraction of the cost of medical bills. First, let’s examine some basic information about arthritis and joint pain.
What is Joint Pain?
Joint pain is a symptom of conditions such as osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, bursitis, or gout. Although they all have joint pain in common, each of these conditions causes joint pain for different reasons. Osteoarthritis (which also is called degenerative joint disease) causes the cartilage in the sufferer’s joints to progressively break down.
The cartilage thins and tears, which causes swollen, painful joints. Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease. The affected person’s joints swell with painful inflammation because their body is fighting its own tissues. This malady is a more severe illness that can threaten the person’s life.
Bursitis is a condition that afflicts the larger joints of the body, such as the hips, elbows, knees and shoulders. It causes inflammation of the bursa, a sac of fluid that cushions the larger joints and keeps them lubricated. When the bursa becomes inflamed it can lose its cushioning ability, which results in joint pain. Gout is a highly painful joint condition in which the person has an accumulation of crystals in their joints, causing severe joint inflammation.
Thankfully, this type of joint pain responds particularly well to home remedies. Joint pain also could be caused by an injury to the joint suffered in sports or from a fall. Finally, it can result from repeatedly performing the same motion at work, or from practicing hobbies with repetitive motions, such as beading or sewing.
How to Avoid Joint Pain
While the following list of remedies can help alleviate your pain, good habits and techniques also can reduce your pain. If you have pain in a specific area of your body after an activity it would be wise to abstain from that activity so your body can rest. Doing so will prevent long-term damage, allowing you to become active again once the pain subsides.
Unfortunately, it may not be possible to stop doing some activities, such as those related to your job. In this case, using home remedies to support your aching joints may ease the inflammation enough to allow you to continue with the activity. In the long run, if you have job duties you cannot avoid that cause joint pain, it may be wise to consider changing your profession.
Continuing could result in injuring your body to the point of permanent disability. If you want to avoid being disabled, taking care of your joints is important. The home remedies listed here can go a long way toward a complete cure for your pain. If you can abstain from activities that increase the inflammation as you use these remedies, you’ll have a much better chance of putting the pain behind you.
Read on for the best home remedies for arthritis and joint pain.
Rely on the Old Standby, Epsom Salts
Epsom salts have been used for generations as a soothing remedy for tired and aching joints. A standard method is dissolving a cup or two of the salts in a warm bath and soaking at least twenty minutes to get the best joint pain relief. These salts are made up of the chemical magnesium sulfate. They are naturally occurring, coming from salt mines.
Magnesium reduces inflammation and reverses arthritis. Some people even say soaking in Epsom salts can improve a sour mood. If you don’t feel like a full bath, you can mix half a cup of Epsom salts in a basin filled with hot water. Soak your stiff and painful hands, wrists, feet or ankles in the basin to get relief. Epsom salts are also a remedy for back pain, fibromyalgia, and other ailments.
Dandelion Oil Can Help Soothe Aching Joints
While the common plant known as dandelion is considered by many today to be nothing more than a weed, for many generations it was used for food and tea and as a treatment for a variety of ailments. The same vigor and vitality that makes this plant so tenacious and difficult to eliminate from our gardens can powerful effects in the treatment of conditions such as arthritis, gout, and even detoxification of the liver and the body.
While detoxification is achieved by making a tea from the dandelion roots, with joint inflammation the best recipe is dandelion oil. To prepare the oil, collect the dandelion flower heads and put them in a glass jar. Then pour in a food-grade oil, such as olive oil or almond oil, to the jar’s brim. Let the jar sit in a warm place for two weeks. Once the oil turns brown and the flowers have lost their characteristic yellow color, the oil is ready.
Strain the oil into another jar and store it in a cool place. Rub this oil into sore and aching joints for arthritis pain relief. It can be surprisingly effective.
Use Turmeric’s Natural Properties to Do Away with Joint Pain
Turmeric is a very pungent and tasty spice used in cooking. It has been used in Asia for centuries and was traded throughout the world in old times. Turmeric is also a potent anti-inflammatory medicine. It is used in Southeast Asia medically as a digestive tonic, a circulation improver, a weight loss aid, a skin care balm, and a protector of the liver.
Turmeric can reduce inflammation, stiffness and pain caused by most joint conditions, which has been proven in laboratory studies. It is effective against all forms of arthritis, bursitis and injuries due to sports or other activities. It can be applied to painful joints in a paste with coconut oil. You also can make an oil infused with turmeric, or buy one at the store and apply it directly to the affected area. It is also effective as a pill.
However you use it, its healing properties make turmeric one of the best home remedies for arthritis.
Keep Your Joints Moving to Prevent Stiffness
It may seem counter-intuitive, and this treatment is not recommended in every case, but it can be helpful to use the hurting joint in gentle exercises to prevent it from freezing up. For instance, if you have arthritic hands, it can be healing to play solitaire or other games to keep the joints gently moving.
For some people this increases the circulation around the joints, alleviating pain from stiffness. For long-time arthritis sufferers this can be an effective form of relief, but if you have an injured joint, rather than a chronic condition this remedy may not be helpful. Also, for joint pain from repetitive movements it is often much better just to rest and take over-the-counter pain medications.
Magnesium is a Good Go-To Mineral for Joint Ailments
Getting magnesium in pill form or in your food can contribute to reduced joint pain. Your body needs magnesium for many biological processes, and cannot produce it on its own. Foods that are magnesium-rich include spinach, pumpkin seeds, yogurt, almonds and avocado.
Magnesium deficiency can cause symptoms such as joint pain to manifest. So, your joint pain potentially be caused in part by not getting enough magnesium in your diet. Rubbing magnesium oil into a painful joint can also alleviate the pain. It is quickly absorbed into your body, so your pain can be reduced quickly using this remedy.
Infrared Light Can Soothe Pain
Infrared light therapy has been proven to work, but it only recently has begun receiving the recognition it deserves as an effective way to reduce joint pain. Infrared light can penetrate as deep as an inch into your body, so it is more than just a surface solution. Many infrared light devices are available, including heating pads, hand-held wands, and flashlights.
Using this form of therapy for your joint pain can provide immediate results. It is known to contribute to the healing of injuries, including joint injuries and joint pain. It is also known for reducing inflammation and restoring range of motion to even long-standing joint injuries and conditions. Because of its unique nature, this remedy can resolve injuries and chronic conditions that may not be as responsive to other natural remedies for arthritis and other forms of joint pain.
Trying this treatment may resolve even long-standing joint debilitation.
Fruit Pectin Can Be Helpful
Fruit pectin is present in the skin of fruits. Orange peels and other citrus peels are particularly rich in pectin. A particularly effective way to get a dose of pectin is eating candied orange peel, which is a delicious traditional food. Pectin contributes to joint smoothness, flexibility and lubrication by rebuilding the connective tissues in the joint. It is also known to collect and remove metals from your joints that may contribute to arthritis and joint pain.
It can help to consume pectin in gel form as it is more usable by your body. Your body can convert it into connective tissue in your joints more effectively than when consumed in other forms, such as powder or pills. Dry pectin can be converted into gel easily with water, or you can make homemade pectin by boiling fruits and straining the liquid into jars.
Pectin made this way is particularly healthy since it is in its most natural form. Another good and natural source of pectin are jellies and jams. Look for it in the ingredients list of your favorites from the supermarket.
Olive Oil is an Old-Time Remedy That Has Stood the Test of Time
Olive oil is an effective joint health builder. It can be helpful as a daily addition to your diet or as the oil base for herbal and medicinal oils and poultices crafted for their inflammation and pain relieving properties. Olive oil has been known for a long time to be one of the most versatile and effective home remedies for many conditions.
It is very healthy for your skin as a face splash to keep your face moisturized and glowing. Including olive oil daily in your diet has been clinically proven to contribute to pain relief. Many healthy enzymes and substances in olive oil contribute, but one of the latest findings is the anti-inflammatory substance oleocanthal.
Studies are proving what people have known for years – olive oil is an excellent remedy for joint pain. With science backing up the traditional wisdom, you can be sure using olive oil is one of the best natural remedies for arthritis.
Use Tea from Juniper Berries
Juniper berries also have anti-inflammatory agents. Tea from juniper berries can unlock these agents and relieve your joint pain. The berries have warming and stimulating properties that can flush out the inflammation. Juniper berries are also an ingredient in creams and salves for joint pain and relieving muscle tension. However, they are recommended only for short-term use.
Using them for longer than four weeks can cause kidney problems. Also, pregnant women should avoid juniper berry tea. Juniper essential oil has the same pain-relieving properties as the tea and can be applied directly to the hurting joint.
Frankincense Can Reduce Inflammation
In recent studies, frankincense was found to reduce swelling and increase range of motion in patients suffering from arthritis. The effect was reported by many patients to be more pronounced and efficacious than when they took ibuprofen. Oil from the frankincense plant is especially potent in reducing joint pain and inflammation. It can be used as an inhalant or massaged into sore joints to alleviate these symptoms.
Frankincense has a long history of medicinal use, easing anxiety and chronic stress, increasing the immune system strength and in oral care for its antiseptic powers. You can use frankincense oil to treat your arthritis pain without having to turn to prescription or over-the-counter drugs. It is a natural remedy that has the power to heal better than conventional treatments.
Peppermint and Eucalyptus Oils are Pain Relievers
People recognize both of these oils for their powerful scent and for the fresh tingling sensation they leave on your skin. Both also are powerful antiseptic agents, and both have established reputations as natural healers. You may not know that among the herbal healing community these two remedies have a reputation as potent pain relievers.
The tingling freshness of peppermint or eucalyptus can melt away your joint pain with the proper application. The most efficacious way to use these oils for treating joint pain is as a massage oil applied to the skin of the affected area. If you can have a professional masseuse do it, you’ll get more benefit from this remedy. Adding an oil to the mix, such as olive oil or almond oil, can help the pain relief penetrate deeper without being as intense.
But much of the enjoyment of using these potent healing herbs comes from their intensity.
Kick Your Joint Pain with Blackstrap Molasses
Rather than applying this remedy to your skin, blackstrap molasses is a potent home remedy for arthritis when mixed as a drink. Historically, this home remedy was used for a long time by everyday people as a joint pain reliever. Blackstrap molasses has properties that help with muscle and nerve functioning as well as strengthening the bones.
Those effects combined are believed to be the power behind blackstrap molasses’ ability to reduce joint pain. Mix and drink one tablespoon of molasses with a cup of warm water once per day and you’ll find over time that your pain subsides and you have more flexibility in the affected joint or joints.
Glucosamine and Chondroitin is a Standard Treatment
Well known in health circles for providing arthritis pain relief, glucosamine and chondroitin increase the amount of cartilage in joints that have lost connective tissue because of joint diseases. They work best for joint and arthritis pain in the hips and knees.
Your body naturally produces glucosamine, but the amount it produces decreases as you age. Supplements with these substances in them can be a solution to your joint pain.
Gelatin Replaces Lost Cartilage
Used for generations as a health food and in cooking, gelatin comes from animal bones. So it is made up almost entirely of protein. Because gelatin comes from animal bones, joints and tissues, it makes plenty of sense that eating gelatin can help your body build its joints, tendons and muscles. The building blocks that grew the bones of the animal are present in the gelatin.
Gelatin also can be a fun remedy, since you can make it from scratch with real gelatin and sugar or any flavoring. It makes a neat snack as well as being something that can heal your joint pain. Gelatin has been proven in studies to reduce immobility, pain and stiffness in the joints.
So, you can be sure this remedy works. It has stood the test of time and today research confirms it is one of the best remedies for joint pain relief.
White Willow Tea Works Better Than Aspirin
For many generations our ancestors made tea from white willow bark to alleviate their aches and pains. Then chemists in the 1800s developed artificial forms of salicylic acid, the active ingredient in white willow bark that relieves pain. In 1899, the drug and dye company Bayer produced a drug named aspirin. It became famous all over the world as one of the go-to pain relief solutions.
What many people don’t know is that, in many cases, white willow bark tea relieves pain better than aspirin. It is the original source of salicylic acid in the form of salicin, which your body metabolizes into salicylic acid upon ingestion. White willow bark tea is a good alternative when you need pain relief in your joints.
These Remedies Can Solve Your Joint Pain and Get You Healthy Again
It is well worth trying some of these remedies to alleviate your arthritis or joint pain. You’ll find that one or a few helps, without having to go to your primary care doctor for relief. They are less expensive than conventional treatments and, in many cases, they are more effective. They also can impart other health benefits, such as overall bone and joint health and muscle health improvement, as in the case of gelatin.
You also may want to go in a similar direction by availing yourself of the services of a natural doctor, such as a naturopath or an herbal medicines specialist. Doctors in this area of medicine can approach your joint pain problem from a fresh point of view. They could have solutions that your primary care doctor may have overlooked. You can find healing for your joint pain.
Seeking alternatives in your health care and trying these home remedies could be your way to a full cure. The power of medicine is in your hands when you choose to heal yourself with home remedies.
