Is it possible to treat osteochondrosis with folk remedies?

Osteochondrosis is a disease characterized by degenerative-dystrophic changes in the intervertebral discs and articular cartilage. The treatment of the pathology is complex, including traditional medicines, physiotherapy, massage, physiotherapy exercises, as well as traditional medicine. The latter include herbal decoctions and infusions, ointments and home-made rubs.

Osteochondrosis of the spine on a CT scan

Despite the fact that the effect of pharmaceutical drugs is superior to alternative methods of treatment of the disease, most drugs can cause side effects. Folk recipes are characterized by a mild effect on the body and an almost complete absence of the risk of negative reactions.

cervical

When it is localized in the cervical spine, a person is disturbed by headache, nausea, stiffness during movement, dizziness when tilting and turning the head, and general malaise. To correct degenerative-dystrophic changes in the neck and neck-shoulder zone, you can use the following recipes:

  1. Be prepared for severe neck painhomemade pain reliever and anti-inflammatory rub. Take 10 ml of iodine, 250 ml of 70% ethyl alcohol, 5 tablets of metamizole sodium crushed into powder, 5 ml of camphor alcohol. Mix the ingredients in a vial and shake thoroughly. Apply the finished rub to the neck and collar area, then wrap this area with a warm scarf.
  2. Ginger-garlic ointment. Finely chop 1 small ginger root and 1 clove of garlic. Mix with 1 tablespoon of butter. Apply to the collar area 2-3 times a day.
  3. Pine bud tincture. Take 150 g of well-washed pine buds and pass them through a meat grinder. Put the resulting minced meat in a glass jar and cover with sugar in a ratio of 2: 1. Close it tightly and put it in a dark place for 10 days. Tincture use 1 tbsp. l. 3 times a day, regardless of meals.
  4. Warm baths with the addition of herbal decoctionsand other natural ingredients. Thanks to the thermal effect, the procedure has a relaxing effect on the skeletal muscles, reduces the intensity of pain, calms the nervous system and helps to improve blood circulation in the damaged areas of the musculoskeletal system.
Osteophytes in the cervical spine with osteochondrosis

Bath preparation methods:

  • Pour 20 horse chestnuts with 1 liter of water, then boil and cook for 15 minutes. The finished soup is filtered and poured into a hygienic bath. The average duration of thermal exposure is 20-25 minutes;
  • two handfuls of young birch leaves are steamed with 1 liter of boiling water and infused for 30 minutes. The resulting concentrate is used as an additive to the medical-hygienic bath;
  • Pour 250 g of pine needles into 500 ml of boiling water and cook for 15 minutes. The finished product is filtered and used warm as an additive.

Thoracic

In people whose work activity involves staying in a sitting position for a long time, in addition to cervical thoracic osteochondrosis, thoracic osteochondrosis develops. The following folk methods are used to treat the disease:

  1. herbal tincture. Take 50 g of Potentilla herb and 70 g of cinquefoil root. The mixture is placed in a glass container and poured with 700 ml of vodka. Medicinal tincture is stored in a dark, dry place for 15 days. The finished medicine is filtered and during the period of exacerbation, 20 drops should be taken three times a day, washed down with a small amount of water. The duration of the therapy is 21 days, after which it is recommended to take a ten-day break and repeat the course.
  2. Alcoholic tincture of calendula. Take 100 g of dried flowers from the plant, mix with 150 ml of triple cologne and 150 ml of camphor alcohol. The mixture is tightly closed with a lid and infused for 2 weeks. The finished tincture is used as a rub for muscle spasms, severe pain, burning, numbness;
  3. Water infusion bay leaf. Mix 250 ml of water and 5 g of bay leaf. The resulting mixture is boiled, poured into a thermos and infused for 12 hours. Filter the finished product and consume 50 ml twice a day. Therapy with laurel infusion lasts 3-4 days.

In order to achieve the best results, it is recommended to use the listed methods in combination with physiotherapy procedures and therapeutic massage, which effectively combats muscle hypertonia and other symptoms of pathology.

Another option to combat the clinical manifestations of the disease is hirudotherapy or exposure to leeches. EFFECT: the method makes it possible to eliminate muscle spasms, improves local blood circulation, and accelerates the recovery of cartilage discs. The active components in leech saliva help reduce congestion and soft tissue swelling. This treatment option is recommended for people with individual intolerance to certain drug groups.

Lumbar

Signs of degenerative-dystrophic changes in the lumbar spine can also play a role in the partial loss of work capacity. For therapeutic purposes, the following recipes of traditional healers are used:

  1. Red chili heating mixture. Mix 80 ml of refined sunflower or olive oil with 5 g of red pepper powder and 10 ml of kerosene. The resulting mixture is thoroughly shaken and used as a poultice in the lumbar region. The agent has a local irritant, anti-inflammatory and anti-oedema effect.
  2. Oregano herbal massage oil. Mix 0. 5 l of olive oil and 150 g of finely chopped dry oregano. The resulting mixture is infused for 7 days, then the oil is filtered and used in a relaxing massage of the lumbar region.
  3. Infusion of strawberry leaves. The medicine is prepared from 50 g of dried strawberry leaves and fruit in 500 ml of boiling water. The medicine must be infused in a thermos for 1 hour. It has a tonic and anti-inflammatory effect.
  4. Warm baths with sea salt. This therapeutic technique helps to relax the muscles of the waist, improves the metabolism in the structures of the spinal column, and accelerates the regeneration processes in the damaged intervertebral discs.

Knee and hip joints

The destructive processes of osteochondrosis affect not only the structure of the spinal column, but also the area of the knee and hip joints. Alternative medicine experts recommend rubbing, poultices, applications made of natural ingredients and baths to treat this pathology. The most effective ways to treat knee and hip joints at home are:

  • Warm therapeutic baths with a concoction of a string. The series of fresh and dried herbs contains a lot of tannins, manganese and other biologically active components that effectively fight inflammation and swelling of the joints. Take 2 handfuls of dry grass, pour 1 liter of boiling water. Boil the resulting mixture over low heat for 15 minutes, then filter. Add to warm bath.
  • Homemade egg butter. Separate 2-3 yolks from hard-boiled eggs, fry in a pan until a dark liquid appears. Decant the resulting medicine into a separate container and use it warm to rub the damaged joints.
  • Burdock leaf poulticepreviously passed through a meat grinder.
  • Pine oil, which can be purchased in herbal medicine. It is used during a therapeutic relaxing massage.
  • Lavender and bergamot oil. When using, make sure that the oil does not get on the mucous membrane of the eyes.

Effective folk recipes for the treatment of osteochondrosis

Table 1.Effective folk recipes for the treatment of osteochondrosis

It is not a conventional method of treatment Recipe and method of administration Therapeutic effect
Infusion of green pine cones
  1. Prepare 25 young spruces.
  2. Take 1 suppository a day, pour 300 ml of boiling water, let it stand for 40 minutes and drink warm twice a day with ½ cup.
  3. The infusion must be prepared daily from fresh ingredients.
Improves metabolic processes in the body, relieves inflammation and accelerates the regeneration of cartilage tissue
dill tincture
  1. Pour 150 g of dill seeds into 0. 5 liters of vodka.
  2. The finished mixture is infused in a dark place for 12 days.
  3. Use 15-20 drops 3 times a day.
Helps eliminate dizziness, normalizes metabolism
Black radishes with honey
  1. Take 1 large fruit, wash it thoroughly and grate it along with the peel on a fine grater.
  2. Add 1 tablespoon to the resulting slurry. l. honey and 1 tsp. vinegar.
  3. The finished mixture is closed tightly and kept in a dark place for 5 days.
  4. It is recommended to use the medicine externally in the form of poultices.
It has a local irritant and anti-inflammatory effect. Relieves pain and stiffness in the spine

Recommendations for treatment with non-traditional methods

Before starting self-treatment at home, you should have a specialist - therapist, rheumatologist and neurologist - examine the exact diagnosis, identify the cause and severity of the disease, predict the risk of complications and possible side effects. .

During therapy with folk remedies, you should follow the following recommendations:

  • during the period of relief of acute manifestations, daily morning exercises should be performed, which improve the flexibility of the body, normalize the mobility of the joints and prevent further aggravation;
  • follow a proper diet - eat dairy products, fresh fruits and vegetables, cereals. Follow the normalization of body weight. Eat small and fractional meals, use as little table salt as possible;
  • consider the contraindications to the use of folk remedies in patients with concomitant pathologies. For example, thermal effects on the body are categorically contraindicated for people suffering from malignant and benign tumors, chronic pathologies of the cardiovascular system, blood diseases and severe disorders of the central nervous system;
  • you must be under the supervision of a doctor during the entire period of traditional medicine treatment.

Be sure to consult your doctor before treating diseases. This helps to take into account individual tolerance, confirm the diagnosis, correct treatment and rule out negative drug interactions. If you write prescriptions without consulting your doctor, you do so entirely at your own risk. All information is informative and not a medical aid. You are solely responsible for the application.