With all of the press about the dangers of pain relievers I am often asked what I use for pain. The answer is turmeric and boswellia. Since virtually all pain comes from inflammation and the waste products of tissue damage which cause inflammation, a natural anti-inflammatory also reduces pain. Curcumin is an active ingredient of turmeric. The next time you feel utterly beat after playing sports, try taking curcumin/turmeric supplements instead of the usual pain-killers. That’s the recommendation of a new European study conducted on injured and hurting rugby players, reported a NutraIngredients.com article.
The European Review for Medical and Pharmacological Sciences recently published the results of a pilot-study by several Italian pharmaceutical companies regarding the effectiveness of Meriva, a proprietary curcumin supplement that’s delivered through a lecithin base.
The 50 male rugby players who participated in the small study sported symptoms of osteo-muscular discomfort. Causes include chronic pain, deliberate overload during exercise and tackling – or getting tackled by – opponents during games.
These players were treated with either standard analgesic drugs or curcumin supplements. They underwent observation for a period of 20 days.
The study found out that curcumin supplements could match typical analgesics when it comes to reducing muscle soreness following intense physical activity, as well as remedy pain derived from injuries. (Related: Don’t take ibuprofen during pregnancy, especially if you’re having a boy: Research shows it suppresses testosterone and disrupts male development.)
Pain relief without gastric side effects!!
The supplement group took a one-gram tablet of Meriva every 12 hours for either five days or 10 days. The analgesics drugs group received medication for three, five or 10 days.
The researchers used a Visual Analog Scale to assess any changes in pain as experienced by the players. They determined the level of improvement in physical function through an arbitrary 0 to 10 scale. A score of 0 indicated complete functionality while a rating of 10 denoted total impairment.
According to the study, both groups reported positive improvements during the monitoring period. Players reported decreased pain and increased physical capability during treatment. The results for the curcumin supplement group matched those from the conventional analgesics group.
However, the curcumin-treated group also enjoyed higher tolerance levels for the supplement. Only four percent of them experienced any adverse effects in the form of gastric pain.
Meanwhile, 16 percent of the group that received standard analgesics suffered those same gastric pains, which is a common side effect of taking pain relief medicine.
Osteo-muscular conditions often stem from intense, high-impact, physical activities such as the sport of rugby.
Curcumin/turmeric, even when administered at higher dosages, has been determined to be a safe and tolerable agent that could avoid the common gastric side effects associated with the use of many anti-inflammatory remedies that are the best standard management,” claimed Riva.
Curcumin is found in the popular spice turmeric. Extracted from the dried rhizome of the turmeric plant, it’s garnered significant scientific attention due to its anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties.
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