Pain management encompasses pharmacological, non-pharmacological, and other approaches to prevent, reduce, or stop pain sensations.

However, today we will focus on the natural ones located in our kitchen.

Pain is a must. In fact pain serves as an alert to potential or actual damage to the body. The definition for damage is quite broad. Pain can arise from injury as well as disease. After the message is received and interpreted, further pain can be counter-productive. Pain can have a negative impact on a person’s quality of life and impede recovery from illness or injury. Unrelieved pain can become a syndrome in its own right and cause a downward spiral in a person’s health and outlook. Managing pain properly facilitates recovery, prevents additional health complications, and improves an individual’s quality of life.

Though research on herbal remedies is still in its early phases, many herbs are thought to provide pain management and decrease inflammation.

In our kitchen we can find natural painkillers that will ease our pain.

1. Ginger

Ginger has been used medicinally for thousands of years in Ayurvedic medicine in India as a natural anti-inflammatory food. Dr. Krishna C. Srivastava, a world-renowned research on the therapeutic effects of spices, at Odense University in Denmark has also conducted extensive research into the anti-pain effects of ginger.

In one study, Dr. Srivastava gave arthritic patients small amounts of ginger daily for three months. The majority of people had significant improvements in pain, swelling, and morning stiffness by eating ginger daily.

2. Cloves

Cloves are the dried flower buds that come from the Evergreen clove tree. Cloves and clove oil are used in cooking, perfumes and flavorings, and have a sweet, warm flavor and smell.

However, this fresh-tasting spice is naturally antibacterial and anti-inflammatory, and is therefore not only useful in the kitchen but also as a herbal medicine. Cloves are beneficial for pain relief, especially for the teeth and gums, and help to reduce inflammation, which is associated with many chronic diseases.

3. Apple cider vinegar

Vinegar is made when fresh, naturally sweet cider is fermented into an alcoholic beverage (hard cider). Then it is fermented once again. The result is vinegar. Apple cider vinegar contains more than thirty important nutrients, a dozen minerals, over half a dozen vitamins and essential amino acids, and several enzymes. Plus, it has a large dose of pectin for a healthy heart.

It is also an old time home remedy that really delivers relief when you need it. It is a weak acid and has been used as a medicine/antiseptic for thousands of years. In the year 400 B.C., Hippocrates, the father of medicine, used vinegar to treat his patients. This naturally occurring germ killer was one of the very first medicines.

4. Garlic

Garlic, known to some as the stinking rose, is used by many cuisines around the world to add flavor to food, but it’s also been used as a natural medicinal ingredient for centuries, both in its fresh plant form and as a supplement.

Garlic has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that may help with arthritis and other pain. For example, a 1999 study published in the “Soviet Archives of Internal Medicine” found that a garlic preparation taken twice a day for four to six weeks can work just as well as conventional therapy for rheumatoid arthritis.

Research also shows that garlic is responsible for lipid-lowering, anti-blood coagulation, anti-hypertension, anti-cancer, antioxidant and anti-microbial effects.

5. Cherries

Fruit Advantage Tart Cherry is a nutritious, all-natural alternative for people in the U.S. who suffer from arthritis and other chronic joint pain. Recent research has shown that tart cherries contain powerful antioxidants that may help relieve the pain of arthritis and gout and also protect the body against cardiovascular disease and inhibit cancer tumors.

Researchers believe that the pain relief may not come from a specific antioxidant in cherries, but may come from the synergistic effect of all the natural compounds in cherries. Tart cherries are well known to contain antioxidants including melatonin. In addition, cherries contain at least 17 natural compounds.

6. Fish oil

Even more important than the president are the omega 3 fats found in oily fish, particularly mackerel, tuna, salmon, sturgeon, mullet, bluefish, anchovy, sardines, herring, trout, and menhaden. They provide about 1 gram of omega-3 fatty acids in about 3.5 ounces of fish.

Fish oil is used for a wide range of conditions. It is most often used for conditions related to the heart and blood system. Some people use fish oil to lower blood pressure or triglyceride levels (fats related to cholesterol). Fish oil has also been tried for preventing heart disease or stroke. The scientific evidence suggests that fish oil really does lower high triglycerides, and it also seems to help prevent heart disease and stroke when taken in the recommended amounts. Ironically, taking too much fish oil can actually increase the risk of stroke.

When fish oil is obtained by eating fish, the way the fish is prepared seems to make a difference. Eating broiled or baked fish appears to reduce the risk of heart disease, but eating fried fish or fish sandwiches not only cancels out the benefits of fish oil, but may actually increase heart disease risk.

7. Yogurt

Our body needs to have a healthy amount of good bacteria in the digestive tract and many yogurts are made using active, good bacteria. One of the words you’ll be hearing more of in relation to yogurt is ”probiotics.” Probiotic, which literally means ”for life,” refers to living organisms that can result in a health benefit when eaten in adequate amounts.

Adequate nutrition plays a major role in the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis, and the micronutrients of greatest importance are calcium and vitamin D.

8. Turmeric

Turmeric, the spice that gives curry its distinctive flavor and coloring has plenty of pain-relief benefits. New research suggests that turmeric possesses anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties and also helps to improve circulation and prevent blood clotting. Turmeric has been used in traditional medicines for easing the pain of sprains, strains, bruises and joint inflammation, as well as for treating skin and digestive issues. The healing power of turmeric comes from its active ingredient – curcumin, which lowers the levels of two enzymes in the body that cause inflammation.

Keep a jar of the powdered spice in your kitchen and add a little to your cooking in place of salt and pepper. Turmeric is also sold in supplement form.

9. Oats

Oats, via their high fiber content, are already known to help remove cholesterol from the digestive system that would otherwise end up in the bloodstream. Now, the latest research suggests they may have another cardio-protective mechanism.

They have been seen to play a role in easing menstrual cramps and bring relief from endometriosis. Oats are loaded with the anti-cramping mineral, previously mentioned, magnesium. They are also one of the best sources of dietary zinc for women who suffer from painful periods.

Oats are harvested in the fall but are available throughout the year and can add extra nutrition to a variety of healthy dishes.

10. Pineapple

As the temperatures heat up, we enrich our daily diet with one of the best tropical super fruit also known as pineapple.

Bromelain, an enzyme found in the stem of pineapple, works like heavy-duty anti-inflammatory pharmaceutical drugs, but without the side effects. It possesses incredibly potent inflammation-fighting powers.

When bromelain reaches your bloodstream, its proteolytic enzymes consume the protein gunk that causes inflammation, while simultaneously driving down your body’s production of joint-inflaming chemicals.

There are many superfoods in our surroundings that will clear our brain and body from toxicity we injest every day. We just have to educate and read more.