The Everything Guide to Herbal Remedies (26 page)

The oils from coconuts
(Cocos nucifera),
sunflowers
(Helianthus annuus),
and olives
(Olea europaea)
also contain natural sunscreens.

Insomnia,
the Latin term for “no sleep,” is the inability to fall asleep—or stay asleep—and the problems related to it, such as waking up feeling tired. It’s the most common sleep complaint in America, affecting up to 40 percent of adults. A recent nationwide survey found that one in five Americans takes a prescription or OTC sleep aid at least once a week—and 63 percent of them experience side effects.

Inflammatory skin problems often develop when the skin’s production of sebum (oil) or skin cells—or both—has gotten out of control. There isn’t any clear cause for these problems, although many seem to involve an allergic or abnormal immune response. But we do know that there are plenty of contributing factors, including stress, infection, and certain pharmaceuticals.

Three of the most common skin inflammations are rosacea, eczema, and psoriasis. Conventional medicine treats eczema and psoriasis with a slew of medications. They include oral antihistamines like OTC diphenhydramine (Benadryl) and prescription-only hydroxyzine (Vistaril), plus topical steroids like OTC hydrocortisone (Cortaid) and prescription triamcinolone (Kenalog) and betamethasone (Betatrex). Topical immunomodulating drugs like prescription-only tacrolimus (Protopic) and pimecrolimus (Elidel) are sometimes used for resistant cases of eczema.

Oral antihistamines often cause sedation. Topical and oral steroids can cause thinning of the skin and increased risk of infections. Tacrolimus and pimecrolimus have been associated with increased risk of cancer and immune system suppression. Herbal treatments, which can be used in conjunction with conventional treatments, include these:

Your mouth is more than a passageway for food, oxygen, and words: It’s also home to your teeth, gums, and other tissues, all necessary for normal eating, breathing, speaking, and smiling. Things that can go wrong in your mouth include tooth decay and cavities, gum disease, sores on the gums or other soft tissues (mucosa), and bad breath (halitosis).

Conventional dentistry recommends you fight cavities, gum disease, and halitosis with regular flossing and brushing with a toothpaste that contains fluoride, which is a mineral that prevents cavities by bonding to the tooth surface and attracting other minerals (a process called remineralization) and inhibiting the ability of bacteria to create acid.

Standard treatments for canker sores involve topical anesthetics like lidocaine or benzocaine or mouthwashes made with the antiallergy drug diphenhydramine, all of which can cause irritation. Halitosis sufferers sometimes use mouthwashes and rinses made with antiseptics like hydrogen peroxide, cetylpyridinium chloride, or alcohol, which kill bacteria but can also damage tissue and create even fouler breath; cetylpyridinium chloride and diphenhydramine can also stain the teeth.

Chewing on a sprig of fresh peppermint
(Mentha x piperita),
spearmint
(Mentha spicata),
or most any mint can clean your teeth and freshen your breath quicker than anything that comes in a tin—and doesn’t fill your mouth with sugar, which can make bad breath even worse. Chewing on parsley
(Petroselinum crispum)
has the same effect, minus the minty flavor.

Accidents will happen—and probably when you least expect them. Accidents and unintentional injuries send more than 30 million Americans to the doctor’s office each year and close to the same number to the emergency room. Lots of mishaps occur at home (cuts and burns are common household injuries) and in the great outdoors (think insect bites and stings, ankle twists, and sunburns). Luckily, herbs offer lots of emergency aid, helping to relieve pain and other unpleasant symptoms and speed recovery.

Unlike chronic illnesses, accidents and injuries are sudden, often unexpected, and require immediate action. First aid is just what its name implies: the immediate assistance given to an injured or sick person. Perhaps the most important part of first aid is being prepared—having the tools and skills you need to assess the situation, determine the best course of action (treat the problem yourself or call for help), and then follow it.

Conventional medicine recommends that you keep some basics on hand, including these:

• Antiseptic solution, like hydrogen peroxide, providone-iodine (Betadine), or benzalkonium chloride (Bactine), to clean wounds and kill germs

• Antibiotic ointment, such as bacitracin/neomycin/polymyxin B (Neosporin), to prevent infection in cuts and other superficial skin injuries

• Antidiarrheal medication, such as loperamide (Imodium) or bismuth subsalicylate (Kaopectate, Pepto-Bismol)

• Over-the-counter (OTC) oral antihistamine like loratadine (Claritin) and diphenhydramine (Benadryl), to stop itching

• OTC oral pain reliever (analgesic), such as acetaminophen (Tylenol), or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) like aspirin and ibuprofen (Advil)

• OTC topical anesthetic, like lidocaine (Topicaine) or benzocaine (Solarcaine, Americaine), to stop pain and/or itching

• OTC topical anti-inflammatory/anti-itch remedy, such as hydrocortisone (Cortaid) or diphenhydramine (Benadryl), to stop itching

• Insect repellant made with N-diethyl-meta-toluamide (DEET) or permethrin, found in Off! and Repel brands, to keep biting insects away

You’ll most likely buy the same types of products whether you use conventional or herbal items to stock your first-aid kit. But choosing herb-based instead of chemical-laden supplies can be very helpful—both for you and the person you’re assisting.

For example:

• Topical antibiotics can cause skin reactions and (more alarming) contribute to the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

• Topical antiseptics can inhibit wound healing if used long term (large doses of providone-iodine can interfere with thyroid functioning). Benzalkonium chloride can irritate skin, lungs, and mucous membranes.

• Conventional antidiarrheal meds can cause constipation and cramping and may interact with other drugs.

• Oral antihistamines can cause weakness, irregular heartbeat, headaches, and nervousness.

• Acetaminophen can cause liver damage (especially if you regularly drink alcohol or coffee); aspirin and other NSAIDS can cause gastrointestinal bleeding, stomach and intestinal damage, tinnitus (ringing in the ears), and heart problems.

• Topical pain relievers can cause swelling, skin irritation, and irregular heartbeat.

• Topical itch remedies can cause a variety of side effects: Corticosteroids can cause skin reactions and can also impair wound healing and increase your chances of infection; antihistamines can cause redness, swelling, and other skin problems.

• Chemical insect repellants are neurotoxins and have been linked to skin and neurological reactions. Combining DEET with a chemical sunscreen can increase the amount of DEET that’s absorbed into your skin, which can be toxic.

In contrast to the pharmaceuticals in an average medicine cabinet, herbal first-aid remedies are generally free of side effects and in many cases perform as well or even better than the commercial drugs.

Compared to the conventional medicines that are based on a single active chemical, herbs contain many constituents. In fact, some experts think that it’s this synergy that makes plant medicines superior to drugs made in a lab. Because they have so many compounds acting at once, they’re much less likely to cause the side effects you see when you’ve got a single foreign agent in the body.

Herbs can also outperform conventional remedies that incorporate more than one active ingredient, such as the first-aid sprays that combine a pain-relieving agent with an infection-fighting chemical, because the herb is almost always kinder to the skin. There are certainly herbs capable of doing harm, but the ones that have been used, time and time again, to treat injuries have been proven to be safe and effective (and generally side effect-free) remedies.

Most herbs contain hundreds of chemical constituents, or phytochemicals, many of which have therapeutic or medicinal value to humans. In many cases, the various constituents in an herb fit perfectly with the first-aid task at hand. For example, a burn might require pain relief as well as a reduction in inflammation and thus would be well served by an herb with both analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties, like calendula
(Calendula officinalis)
or chamomile
(Matricaria recutita).

A cut or scrape could also use some antibacterial action, so you might use barberry
(Berberis vulgaris)
or tea tree
(Melaleuca alternifolia),
both of which can effectively relieve pain, reduce inflammation, and kill germs. Or maybe you have an injury that needs a styptic (something to stop bleeding) as well. In that case, you can reach for aloe
(Aloe vera)
or horsetail
(Equisetum arvense).

When your body suffers an impact, it can leave a contusion or hematoma (also known as a plain old bruise), which involves localized discoloration, swelling, and inflammation. If you take a fall or bump into something hard enough, the tiny blood vessels just under the skin will rupture, and your skin will develop the telltale black-and-blue color as blood leaks into the surrounding tissues and gets trapped there.

In most cases, bruises are not a big deal and will clear up within a couple weeks. However, if you experience severe pain and swelling, see a health care provider, as this may be a sign of a more serious injury. You also should see a doctor if you sustain a black eye that’s accompanied by bleeding within the eye, which can cause serious damage to your cornea (the transparent outer surface of your eye).

Conventional medicine typically treats bruises, bumps, and other injuries that don’t break the skin with OTC meds: oral analgesics and NSAIDs, which can cause gastrointestinal problems, and topical painkillers, which can cause skin irritation and other side effects. Several herbs have been used traditionally, both internally and topically, to treat bruises:

A burn is an injury to the skin that can be caused by several things, including heat, chemicals, radiation (such as sun exposure), and electricity. Most burns are minor—you’ve accidentally touched a hot stove or spent too much time in the sun—and can be treated at home.

Doctors classify burns according to the amount of damage they’ve caused. A first-degree burn affects just the top layer of skin (the epidermis) and is by far the most common type. A first-degree burn will be red and painful and will blanch (turn white) when you press on it. It may swell a bit and might peel within a day or two, and will probably heal within a week.

Second-degree burns affect more layers of skin. The skin will blister and be red and swollen, and will take a few weeks to heal. (These burns are more prone to infection, so you should probably see your health care provider.) Third-degree burns, the most severe, affect all layers of the skin and possibly other tissues as well, and take months to heal. These burns always require medical attention.

Sunburn is a type of radiation burn caused by UV, or ultraviolet, light. You can get one from a tanning bed or booth as well as from the real thing.

Most often, sunburns are minor (first-degree burns) that make you uncomfortable for a day or so. Occasionally, you can get a second-degree burn from sun exposure, meaning blistering, more pain, and a longer recovery time.

Conventional remedies for minor burns include topical anesthetics/analgesics and oral pain relievers such as NSAIDs. Burns that might get infected are treated with topical antiseptics and antibiotics, which can inhibit healing and cause skin reactions. Here are some herbal alternatives: