3 Natural Ways to Cure Back Pain, Joint Pain, and Migraines
Pains and aches in your body shouldn’t prevent you from living life to the fullest. Here are three natural ways to cure pain in your back and your joints along with eliminating migraines!
Back Pain
Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) involves tensing and relaxing muscles, and researchers say practicing the therapy twice a day for 10 minutes eases back pain by 80 percent over eight weeks. How? PMR stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system, which calms pain nerves. To try it: Make tight fists and hold for five seconds, then open your hands, focusing on how the relaxed muscles feel. Repeat with muscle groups throughout the body. For more instruction, download a free app, like Progressive Muscle Relax.
Joint Pain
When joint pain becomes chronic, consider adding collagen to your diet. In a study published in the journal Nutrition Research, subjects who ate collagen peptides daily experienced a 43 percent reduction in joint stiffness and a 39 percent boost in joint mobility. Scientists explain that collagen works to fortify the cartilage, ligaments, and tendons that support joint movement. To get the benefits, enjoy foods that prod the body to make collagen, like bone broth, poultry, seafood, citrus fruits, and berries. Or you can get in the form of a powder like Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides (Buy at Walmart, $24.99).
Migraines
Try soaking in a warm bath when a migraine or headache hits as a soothing way to cure pain. The warm water prods the release of painkilling hormones like oxytocin, which decreases head pain within four hours. And since Stanford University researchers report that regular baths reduce the risk of future migraines by 75 percent, consider making them a habit. Also smart: Add 15 drops of lavender essential oil to your bath water. Breathing in the floral scent brings relief to 71 percent of migraine sufferers.
A version of this article originally appeared in our print magazine, First for Women.
