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Strongest Herbal Pain Killers: As Alternatives For
Chemical Pain Relievers

Emily is your typical American, bound in the corporate life during day time and back to
her house before night time. But she has a terrible secret, one that she keeps from her
colleagues and relatives. Every night, after she has tucked her kids to sleep and before
she finally dozes o peacefully, she takes oxycodone to manage her chronic hip and
back pain. While this drug is available over the counter, she takes it beyond the pre-
scribed dosage by her physician.

Her story is not uncommon, millions of pain sufferers

have become dependent on pain killers

According to a study done by NCCIH in 2012, around 25.3 million Americans suer
from chronic pain. In a separate study by ASAM, they found out that a huge number of
substance-related disorders are attributed to addiction on opioids. Of the 20.5 million
Americans who have substance-abuse issues, 2 million of those are addicted to pre-
scription pain killers.

The problem even persists in our brave soldiers who have to face pain management
after their service. Around 44% of the US soldiers suer from chronic pain and 15%
rely on opioids to manage their pain. Such statistics can give one an insight of just how
prevalent chronic pain is and opioid use is among the population.

The problem with opioids and its derivatives

Opioids act on the receptors of the central nervous system, inhibiting their activation.
This is how they provide for pain relief, analgesia and relaxation to patients. Other mild
side eects of opioids and its derivatives are nausea, vomiting, sweating and constipa-
tion.

The problem is that with continued use, the individual can become dependent and
would need higher dosage for the drug to still be eective. With improper dosage, ad-
verse side eects such as urinary retention, delirium and even respiratory depression
can occur.

Turning to herbal pain killers

According to a study done by NHS, complementary health medicine is an emerging

trend in America. Around 17.7% of the American population relies on herbal supple-
mentation from 2007 to 2012. This means that a huge part of the general population is
turning to herbal supplementation for their dietary needs.

Unfortunately, there are no published statistics yet on how prevalent is the use of
herbal pain killers for the population. Perhaps this is an area that is under the radar of
the public yet. Dont worry as we got you covered. In this post, we would shed some
light into the most potent herbal pain killers. We would also discuss whether they can
be alternatives for the chemical pain relievers we already know of.

1. Corydalis Yanhusuo

Common Name: Corydalis

Learn More: Corydalis is a native herb in China, the home of traditional medicine.
Corydalis yanhusuo is just one of the many types of this herb. It has been gaining pop-
ularity recently for its analgesic eects. The two main properties from the herb that are
well-studied are dehydrocorybulbine and l-tetrahydropalmatine. The analgesic and
sedative eects of corydalis yanhusuo can also be traced from these properties.

How It Works: Generally, corydalis yanhusuo works as an antagonist in the dopamine

receptors. Both dehydrocorybulbine and l-tetrahydropalmatine are dopamine antago-
nists, specifically acting upon the D2 receptors of the body to increase the turnover of
dopamine. By doing so, they induce the release of dopamine and therefore, modulate
the pleasure pathway. The feeling of pain is therefore lessened as more dopamine is
released by the body.

Risks: Corydalis yanhusuo can cause sedation and even depression even on mild
dosages. It is also not unusual to experience numbing and sleepiness as dopamine
levels continue to fluctuate whilst on this medication. Pregnant and nursing women are
also advised to avoid taking this medication. While the herb doesn't cause tolerance or
dependency, consult an expert in the field for proper dosage for your specific case pri-
or to taking it.

2. Lactuca Virosa

Common Name: Wild Lettuce

Learn More: Lactuca virosa grows natively in Europe, specifically in its central and
southern regions. It can also be found in some parts of America, India, Iran and Pa-
kistan. In the book Top 100 Food Plants, written by Ernest Small, it was discussed that
wild lettuce was already known as an herb during the Roman era. It was regarded as a
narcotic, due to its milky latex substance.

(Image from Amazonia Exotics)

How It Works: The primary component of lactuca virosa is lactucin, along with its de-
rivatives of lactucopicrin. Lactucin acts as an agonist to the adenosine receptors,
specifically A1 and A2. Of the two, its action on the A2 receptor is important for
dopamine turnover and therefore, the modulation of pain. Lactucopicrin is an antago-
nist for the acetylcholinesterase receptors, which means it prevents the break down of
the enzyme. Acetylcholinesterase has some anti-inflammatory eects in the nervous
system as well.

Risks: This herb has mild sedative eects but in higher dosages, can also cause rest-
lessness. In this clinical study, several patients were diagnosed with wild lettuce toxici-
ty. Adverse side eects that were noted are agitation, anxiety, urinary retention, ataxia
and hallucinations. Possible reasons for the toxicity are the consumption of the herb
without cooking and out of the harvesting season time.

3. Mitragyna Speciosa

Common Name: Kratom

Learn More: Mitragyna Speciosa is perhaps the most controversial herb in this post.
Commonly referred to as kratom, this herb can be found in the Southeastern Asian re-
gion. Its opioid-like eects though has made it quite infamous. It has already been
banned in various states in the US. In Asia, countries like Malaysia and Thailand pro-
hibit the selling, buying or using of kratom. So it depends on where youre from if you
can use this herb as a pain reliever.

 (Image from Uomo Vitruviano)

How It Works: Mitragynine is the main property of kratom. It works by binding to the
-opioid receptors of the body. When it does so, it produces analgesia and sedation.
Mitragynine is a biased agonist of the -opioid receptors though. It signals the G pro-
tein instead of the B-arrestin. Thus, the possibility of experiencing tolerance and respi-
ratory depression is lower, as compared to chemical opioids.

Risks: In low dosages, kratom ingestion can lead to agitation, anxiety or loss of ap-
petite, apart from its sedative and analgesic eects. With higher dosages, there can be
adverse reactions. Take the case of this man who took kratom outside the prescribed
dosages for two weeks. He developed jaundice and pruritus because of such actions.
Other side eects such as seizure, kidney failure and pulmonary edema were also not-
ed with the use of kratom, though in conjunction with other drugs.

4. Nymphaea Caerulea

Common Name: Blue Lotus

Learn More: Originally, nymphaea caerulea was native to Northeastern Africa. In fact,
the herb finds a mention on the Book of the Dead, an ancient book of spells from
Egypt. Back then, the herb, termed commonly as the blue lotus, was regarded as an
aphrodisiac. This herb also has many uses in traditional Ayurvedic medicine. It is only
in recent years that its analgesic eects are being studied. This herb has been banned
in countries of Latvia, Poland and Russia.

How It Works: Nymphaea Caerulea has two primary components which are the follow-
ing: apomorphine and nuciferine. Apomorphine works as a dopamine receptor antago-
nist, which means it increases the turnover of dopamine. Again, this can have modula-
tory eects when it comes to the feeling of pain. On the other hand, nuciferine is also a
dopamine receptor antagonist but works mainly to inhibit motor movements.

Risks: Some of the milder side eects of blue lotus are vomiting and hot flashes. If
taken in conjunction with other stimulating drugs, the side eects can be adverse.
Symptoms such as euphoria, hallucination and disorientation can be experienced. Do
not take blue lotus with prescription medications as it can interact with them.

5. Petasites

Common Name: Butterburs

Learn More: Commonly found in marshy and moist areas, petasites are yet another
potent herbal alternatives that you can turn to. They are found in many regions of Asia
and even America. Even during the ancient times, petasites were used for fever, pain
and even headaches. Today, it is a well known herb for treating migrates and many
studies have already proved its eectiveness in treating this disease. Little known to
many though is that petasites can also be eective in treating pain caused by inflam-
mation.

How It Works: Petasites work by inhibiting the lipoxygenase pathway and therefore,
suppressing the production of leukotrienes. This enzyme is one of the main modulators
for inflammation. When it is released, the inflammation process begins. In one study,
Petatewalide B was isolated from the herb and the researchers found out that this
property have strong inhibitory eects to nitric oxide, another modulator of inflamma-
tion and pain.

Risks: Make sure you get your petasites extracts from distinguished health stores.
With improper preparation, you can ingest the pyrrolizidine alkaloids from its stem.
These alkaloids can cause hepatic toxicity to anyone who ingests them.

6. Piper Methysticum

Common Name: Kava Kava

Learn More: Kava kava is locally known as yaqona in Fiji. It is the national drink of the
country. Its scientific name is piper methysticum and it is a part of the pepper family. In
many countries, this herb is regulated strictly. You might have issues with bringing kava
kava to regions like Australia and Poland, where there were news of its banning.

 (Image from Forest & Kim Starr)

How It Works: Piper methysticum works by inhibiting the COX pathways. It also sup-
presses the production of NF-B, which is an important factor for the mediation of the
inflammatory process. In a study by Smith and colleagues, they separated the various
properties of piper methysticum. They found out that the dihydrokavain property has
anti-anxiety or sedative eects as well.

Risks: Kava kava has been under the limelight for wrong reasons lately. In this study, it
was featured as one of the 21 herbs that can cause liver injuries when ingested. Simi-
larly, in this study, it was designated as one of the 3Ks. These three Ks are kratom,
kava kava and khat, determined as the most potent herbal hepatotoxicity inducers.

These herbs are not without their risks

But then, which medication doesn't have side eects? It is important to research well
about the information with regards to any medication you take. While these potent
herbs have their downsides, you also cant dismiss their advantages. If youre not suf-
fering from heart conditions or you're not taking any other prescription medicines, these
alternatives might work well for you.

Always remember that you have to follow the correct dosage. If you intend to use these
herbs in their natural forms, then you must follow the proper preparation procedures as
well. If youre buying online, make sure you do so from a reputable health store. And
finally, its not bad to take advice from experts in the field such as physicians or
botanists. Theres tons of blogs and websites online too which can help you when it
comes to natural healing with herbs.