Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine (Osteochondrosis) is a degenerative-dystrophic lesion of the intervertebral discs, due to which the discs, vertebrae and joints of the cervical spine are damaged, a decrease in the height of the intervertebral discs is observed. The disease progresses if left untreated and can lead to headaches, circulatory problems and even hernias.
Cervical osteochondrosis is a cause of acute pain that is poorly relieved by medication. The use of folk remedies allows you to get rid of the unpleasant symptoms of this disease and will not harm the body. They are used in addition to conservative therapy, physiotherapy, massage, as a supplement and increase the chances of recovery.
Characteristics of the unconventional approach
Treatment of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine by folk methods is carried out under the supervision of a specialist. The disease itself is considered dangerous, therefore, without qualified medical care, it progresses quickly and leads to numerous complications. Unconventional approach is used by doctors in case of detection of serious contraindications or acute intolerance to anti-inflammatory drugs. Thus, the main characteristics of the treatment are:
- Minimal number of side effects and availability to all segments of the population.
- As part of proven recipes, only natural ingredients, which increases the safety of their use.
- High treatment efficiency with the right approach.
- Possibility of combining traditional therapy, massage, exercise therapy, physiotherapy with traditional medicine methods.
- Low likelihood of developing side effects, depending on the dose and duration of the course.
- Successful alleviation of inflammation and pain, elimination of muscle cramps, stabilization of the central nervous system.
- The ability to cook everything yourself from high-quality ingredients, the whole process is easy and does not require special knowledge and training.
- The treatment is carried out at home.
Alternative methods allow you to get a stable remission and stop the progression of the disease, increase immunity, improve the general condition of the patient. Due to the natural composition, the probability of side effects or the development of complications is small.
Main methods and means of treatment
Cervical osteochondrosis is manifested by a series of unpleasant symptoms. Many patients complain of decreased vision or hearing, tinnitus, increased fatigue, muscle aches, toothache and headache, inability to perform simple exercises completely due to stiffness. To combat them, various methods and recipes of traditional medicine are used, as follows:
- fat,
- rubbing,
- tincture,
- decoctions,
- compresses,
- baths.
All the ingredients for proven recipes can be found in any pharmacy, and they are usually cheap. This applies not only to herbal preparations, but also to bee products (bee venom, propolis, perga), snake venom, aromatic oils and more.
The best compresses for neck pain
Treatment of cervical chondrosis with folk remedies is better to start using different types of rubs and compresses. Local exposure will warm the area, reduce the appearance of pain, improve blood circulation and alleviate inflammation. Do the procedure several times a day, usually no more than five. In this case, the set exposure time must not be exceeded. The best recipes for wraps are:
- It is necessary to find fresh horseradish leaves, pour boiling water over them. After the solution has cooled and absorbed a little, gauze is moistened in it and applied to the sore spot. All this is better not to do at night. Thanks to special components, such an effect well relieves pain.
- Take fresh cottage cheese, mix it well and add a little vinegar. The resulting mass is applied evenly to the neck area. You need to put a scarf or a warm cloth on top of the wrap. All this is stored for at least 12 hours, so it is usually recommended at night.
- Ordinary turpentine has shown itself well in the fight against cervical osteochondrosis. Water is added to 200 g of rye flour and a hard cake is made. It is infused for two days, after which turpentine is applied to the sore spot, covered with dough and wrapped in a scarf. While the discomfort is bearable, all this must be kept, then removed, rinse the place with warm water.
- Effectively relieves inflammation and pain honey and potatoes. To do this, peeled tubers are rubbed on a coarse grater, mixed in half with a natural bee product and all this is applied to the sore spot. Put paper and a clean cloth on it. Hold for 2 hours, then rinse with water and dry the place. Rub fir oil into the skin.
Eggs, vodka, aloe juice with honey, garlic and kerosene are also used as the main ingredients for osteochondrosis compresses. With some products, it is especially important to pay attention to the dose and duration of exposure, because if used carelessly, they can cause burns.
Neck rubbing in osteochondrosis
Alternative treatment methods also suggest the use of good rubbing along with compresses. They can consist of various components to solve the problem of pain, pinching or other pathological processes in the neck. The following recipes are very popular for this:
- Take half a pack of natural butter (72%), mix with a spoonful of flour, beaten egg and 25 g of vinegar. The mixture should be of homogeneous consistency, after which it is sent to a dark place for infusion. The resulting composition is washed into the painful area, covered with a film for several hours, and then washed off with warm water.
- Grated radish is rubbed on a large grater, in the end you should get about half a cup. Vodka and honey are added in the same amount, plain salt is added, 2 tablespoons are enough. After obtaining a homogeneous mass, the composition can be used as a rub. The mixture perfectly warms and relieves pain.
- For severe pain, it is good to use a mixture consisting of ethanol, iodine and camphor alcohol. They are mixed in a ratio of 300 ml: 10 ml: 10 ml. To the resulting composition is added 10 tablets of analgin in crushed form.
If there is a cut or open wound at the site of rubbing, they cannot be used. It is better to use dressings or other proven methods. Their use is also unacceptable in the presence of chronic skin pathologies, the deterioration of which may cause such treatment.
Popular fats
It is impossible to cure osteochondrosis with fat alone, but they are an important component of complex therapy. Different compositions can anesthetize the problem area, alleviate inflammation and improve general condition. The following proven recipes are very popular:
- Take half a pack of quality butter (you can replace it with lard), add mint grass, coriander fruits and birch buds. Apply the resulting ointment on the problem area 23 times a day.
- In a little or fat add St. John's wort, snake root, birch buds. The resulting mixture is slightly insisted on and used only for the intended purpose.
- Take marigold flowers, mint grass, hop seedlings, meadow flowers, eucalyptus leaves and mix it all with the fat. The resulting composition is applied to the painful area.
- Take 6 large bay leaves, mix it with juniper needles (about 1 teaspoon), add 70 g of butter. Crush the mixture well, preferably in a blender until a homogeneous consistency is obtained and rub into the sore spot. The composition perfectly relieves pain and soothes the affected area.
Ointments can also be used as coatings if you put a scarf over them. It is important to fix everything firmly with a bandage, so that the fabric does not absorb the mixture, plastic foil is placed on it.
Decoctions of useful plants
Traditional medicine offers not only a local effect on inflammation of the neck, but also the intake of many home remedies inside. If ointments, compresses and rubbing help locally solve the problem of inflammation and pain, then decoctions, infusions perfectly stimulate the immune system, improve metabolism from within.
The most popular recipes are:
- Take about 400 g of cranberries and peeled garlic cloves, a few medium ones are enough. Grind or finely chop them thoroughly, leave in a clean bowl for one day. Then add 800 g of honey to the composition, mix until a homogeneous consistency is obtained. The drug is used per teaspoon 3 times a day.
- Take the sunflower root (it is problematic to find it out of season), rinse and dry well, chop. 150 g will be enough, which is added to 3 liters of water. It all caught fire and brought to a boil. The resulting broth is infused for two days, after which it is taken by spoon 30 minutes before meals. It is advisable to prepare a new portion of the drug in advance so as not to interrupt the course.
- Take 250 g of peeled needles, pour one liter of water. Burn all this and cook for half an hour. The resulting broth is cleaned of branches and divided into equal parts to form 6 portions that must be drunk within three days at intervals of 8-12 hours.
- Dandelion root (about 15 g) is cleaned of dirt, dry shoots and poured with half a liter of boiling water. The resulting solution is infused for an hour, after which it is filtered and taken by tablespoon before meals.
Such decoctions well remove salts from the body, this is easily understood by the change in urine color. At the beginning of the process, it becomes almost orange, after which it becomes more transparent, as soon as all harmful components leave the body. But it should not be forgotten that spicy and salty foods are strictly forbidden during treatment. Decoctions go well with other more conservative methods and help the body fight pathology. Medicinal herbs such as burdock, wild grass, string, violet and plants are also used.
Therapeutic baths
In cervical osteochondrosis, warm water, to which various components have been added, relieves tension, pain and cramps. The procedure is carried out at a temperature in the range of 37-39 ° C, a higher rise of the thermometer is unacceptable. It should not be forgotten that this is a medical procedure, so it is important not to overdo it. As a useful addition you can use:
- birch leaves,
- wild chestnut,
- chamomile,
- bischofite,
- needle branches.
The retention time in water is 10-20 minutes, even if the procedure is carried out for preventive purposes. Due to the optimal temperature and the presence of phytocomponents in the water, muscle tissue relaxes, inflammation is reduced, and pain is practically not felt. Such baths are also useful for dizziness, frequent pains and for raising the mood, improving the psycho-emotional state.
herbal teas
You can check the effectiveness of a certain medicine by reviewing the reviews of other patients with a similar disease. Usually patients share prescriptions, which medications have helped the best, which has proven to be completely ineffective. One of the most popular treatments is herbal teas. The following benefits are used in the fight against osteochondrosis:
- Marigold + chamomile + strawberry + birch leaf + St. John's wort.
- Licorice root + yarrow + peppermint + marigold.
- Cranberry + thyme + plantain + lemon balm + wild rose + petal.
- Nettle + chamomile + dried flower + marigold + dandelion.
- Strawberries + lemon balm + pine buds + lime flowers + lavender.
Such fees are sold in pharmacies or herbalists, and usually when cooking there is no need to choose the dose yourself, it is shown on the package. In most cases, a teaspoon per 350 g of boiling water is enough. Drink the drink without added sugar. Compensation is especially effective in the initial phase of the disease.
Other treatments
Traditional medicine uses various ways to fight against pathologies of the musculoskeletal system. Not only products and herbs are used, but also mud, paraffin, wax and other compounds. As practice shows, they also stop the pain syndrome well, eliminate inflammation, improve blood flow and allow you to prolong the period of remission.
Therapeutic mud is used in different ways. Procedures are usually performed in sanatorium conditions or special medical facilities. Exposure time is determined individually. The technique is very suitable for preventive purposes.
Possible mistakes
Folk methods, despite their safety and naturalness, can be harmful if used incorrectly. Treatment should be carried out under the strict supervision of specialists, because self-medication often leads to rapid progression of the pathology. To prevent this from happening, you need to avoid the most common mistakes:
- It is not allowed to use heating pads or warm compresses in the acute phase. Temporary relief does not mean relief, because exposure to heat only leads to the spread of inflammation and worsening of tissue damage.
- If the patient often has pressure surges, baths and steam rooms are contraindicated for him with cervical osteochondrosis. You can't walk in them even to people without hypertension during a cold, when the body temperature is very high.
- Recipes of traditional medicine that have proven effective for removing salt will not work if the vertebrae grow.
- Self-massage or other direct effects cannot be performed in the area of the pathological process, they will only worsen the health condition and lead to complications.
These are the most common mistakes of patients who self-medicate at home or use prescriptions of traditional medicine. Therefore, it is better to deal with the pathology of the cervical vertebrae together with a doctor.
How to prevent exacerbation?
The fight against cervical osteochondrosis can continue for a long time, and the patient is required not only to adhere to all doctor's prescriptions, but also to exclude all factors that cause worsening. You can protect yourself from decay in the following ways:
- In everyday life it is necessary to avoid stress on the spine, do not make sharp turns of the head, squats, bending or rapid change of posture.
- Dress warmly, according to the weather, to prevent hypothermia of the neck and shoulder girdle, always wear a scarf.
- Constantly do the exercises provided in the physiotherapy exercises, do not miss classes, follow the technology and sequence of actions.
- If the professional activity is related to sitting in one position or at the computer, then every 1. 5 hours you should take a short break and simply warm up to restore blood circulation in the neck.
- Stop drinking alcohol and smoking, because they reduce the body's defenses, cause complications and worsen the condition.
- Treat acute respiratory diseases and viruses on time, follow all the doctor's instructions.
- Control your weight, eliminate harmful foods and overeating in the evening.
- Refuse hot baths or baths.
- Buy a high-quality orthopedic mattress with a sufficient degree of rigidity.
Patients should also visit a massage therapist to undergo a course of therapeutic effects in the neck area, usually prescribed for 10 days. It is equally important to refuse to carry weights, no more than 5 kg in one hand, otherwise there is a risk of provoking the process of deformation in the spine.
Cervical osteochondrosis is the destruction of cartilage tissue, which leads to a number of unpleasant consequences. If you do not start the fight on time, nerve endings will be pinched, blood vessels will be squeezed and efficiency will be reduced. Pathology can be treated not only with drugs, but also with folk remedies. For that, the most effective methods and recipes have been selected that are safe and will not cause an allergic reaction.