Natural Keys to PAIN FREE!
These pantry staples have been proven to quickly ease common seasonal aches — no Rx required! “Certain spices
help with headaches… spicy mustards
help relieve sinus headaches.”
Padma Lakshmi, 47
April showers are giving way to May flowers — and that means we can finally go outside to walk, garden and enjoy Mother Nature. So the last thing we want is to be sidelined by seasonal aches and pains. But if they do hit, relief could be as easy as reaching into the pantry, says Fred Pescatore, M.D., founder of Medicine 369 in New York. “Many health concerns can be relieved without a trip to the drugstore, using items you have on hand.” Here’s how!
TO EASE SINUS PRESSURE
Allergy flares triple the risk of sinus congestion and facial pain. But massaging the base of your skull, along the hairline to behind your ears, with a dab of rosemary oil can cut sinus pain in half in 2 minutes, report scientists in the Journal of Paramedical Sciences. The herb’s aromatic oil calms pain nerves, and the massage stimulates acupressure points to improve sinus drainage. To make the oil, simmer 1 oz. of dried rosemary in 1⁄ cup of a carrier 2 oil for 5 minutes; strain. Refrigerate for up to one week.
TO SOOTHE SORE MUSCLES
One in four women have tight, sore muscles brought on by an uptick in physical activity. To increase your pain threshold and ease your aches in just 10 minutes, take six slow, deep sniffs of marjoram, crushing the fresh leaves to release their oils. Japanese scientists say the herb’s scent has a soothing effect on the brain, calming the central nervous system to relax muscles.
TO RELIEVE SHOULDER PAIN
A warm rice compress can help when shoulders are achy. The grain’s outer shell retains heat, which dilates blood vessels to increase blood flow to damaged tissues, say scientists at the University of California at Berkeley. To do: Fill a long sock twothirds of the way with uncooked rice and tie shut, then microwave on high for 2 minutes; apply to sore spots for 5 minutes three times a day.
TO RELAX A TIGHT BACK
If your back is in knots, soaking in a steamy bath with 1 cup of apple cider vinegar and 1 cup of Epsom salts can ease the pain within 20 minutes. Canadian researchers say the acids in apple cider vinegar and the magnesium in Epsom salts draw out pain-triggering toxins through pores, plus work to relax muscles and speed the healing of damaged tissues. To rinse any vinegar smell off your skin, end your soak with a quick shower.