Life Fitness Academy :: Nashville Personal Trainer: Natural Headache Relief

Headaches are annoying and they can be terribly incapacitating… or annoying. We wanted to go over some natural herbs that can help with headache and migraine relief. With herbs it is important to go slow and see how the body will react. Small amounts should be taken to start and as always check with your doctor, especially if you are on any medication. Many times, prescription medication can actually be the cause of headaches as the body is thrown out of balance or the body is trying to remove the foreign medication and detoxify. Ideally one would be off of all medication.

Some natural remedies are:

1. Massage
Massage helps circulation and eases tension. Try massaging the muscles of the back, feet, and head. Massage near, and around pressure points. Massage the area on the sides of your nose (all the way up and down) and the area behind your ears.

2. Magnesium
Magnesium can help reduce migraines by helping to relax the blood vessels and prevent the compression characteristic of migraines. Foods high in magnesium include, black beans, quinoa, halibut, pumpkin and squash seeds, spinach, and okra.

3. White Willow Bark
Willow bark is the whole plant from which aspirin was derived. It is tolerated much better in its natural form and rarely has any side effects. It also works to reduce inflammation. Like most painkillers it is important to not become dependent upon it.

4. Feverfew
One of the best and most popular remedies for headaches, feverfew is a short perennial plant used to prevent migraines. Typically the dried leaves of the plant are used, but sometimes the flowers and other parts are used as well. Look for capsule or liquid extract forms. Sometimes people are allergic to feverfew and as always start with a small controlled dose or supplement.

5. Butterbur
Butterbur is a plant in the daisy family and has shown effectiveness in treating seasonal allergies. It is especially helpful if your headache is allergy related. For other uses it is best in combination with feverfew or another headache relieving herb.

6. Cramp Bark
Cramp bark works well for muscle tension headaches as well as muscle pain relief. It is most commonly used to treat menstrual cramps, but it is also effective for other muscle pain and muscle spasms. Cramp bark is excellent in that it has little to no side effects and it may improve your overall health, so it is suited for short and long term use.

Some other herbs to consider:
Peppermint – has a cooling effect and can ease inflammation

Cayenne – the capsaiciin can raise the pain threshhold

Vervain – can help with pain, headaches, asthma, and ulcers with no known side effects.

Peony – can relax muscles and relieve spasms and cramps

Some products that have a nice combination of some of the above mentioned herbs:

MigreLief – contains feverfew, magnesium, and riboflavin

Now Foods Butterbur with Feverfew – contains both butterbur and feverfew

Now Foods White Willow Bark

We hope this gives you some help and insight into natural headache relief!