The medicine cabinet makeover you’re long overdue for

Sometimes I feel like Michael Stipe was singing about me in R.E.M’s 1993 hit song… particularly when he sings, “Everybody hurts… sometimes.”

And as I get older, the more these lyrics resonate with me — especially from a physical standpoint. It’s seems as though it’s getting harder and harder to avoid pain — specifically after taking part in any type of strenuous activity. Plus, those aches and pains certainly stick around a lot longer than they used to…

And while I’m poking fun at getting older, I think we can all relate. Especially when it comes to acute pain — the type of temporary pain you feel with a headache, muscle strain, minor wound, or from overdoing your workout.

Of course, the go-to medications for acute pain are household names we’re all familiar with — aspirin, Tylenol®, Advil®, and others. And no matter how infrequent your use, your body struggles to metabolize these synthetic, unnatural agents.

As we’ve seen with acetaminophen (Tylenol®), a dosage miscalculation can land you in the ER with life-threatening liver dysfunction.

Although these medications have been standby solutions for many people for many years, there are much safer alternatives that possess the same level of effectiveness. Today we’ll look at three solutions you should keep in your medicine cabinet that are ideal for acute pain.

Your all-natural “white knight” of pain relief

One of the earliest links between natural treatments and modern patent medicines is white willow bark. But you’re probably more familiar with its conventional version…

On the eve of the 20th century, Bayer® introduced a product called Aspirin®. That was the actual brand name of a synthesis of compounds that are quite similar to salicin, the active component of white willow bark extract.

Like the drug it spawned, willow bark is an anti-inflammatory pain reliever. But unlike aspirin, it’s far less abrasive to your digestive tract.

As for effectiveness, in Dr. Pescatore’s Pain-Free Life Protocol, he cites a Columbia University study that found willow bark to be just as effective as brand-name non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in reliving acute pain.

In another study, German researchers treated more than 400 patients with chronic pain problems like osteoarthritis and back pain with willow bark extract. After three weeks, pain levels fell by an impressive 45 percent on average.

In the journal Phytomedicine, researchers concluded that the extract can be a “basic treatment in the long-term therapy of painful musculoskeletal disorders.”

Based on these and many other trials, Dr. Pescatore recommends taking 400 mg tablets of white willow bark extract, up to four times per day.

Doubling up to eradicate both acute and chronic pain

Next up is an herbal, homeopathic treatment called arnica that’s been used for hundreds of years to treat inflammation-based pain. But as Dr. Pescatore points out, it’s got plenty of modern science behind it.

In a trial that involved throat surgery patients, arnica reduced sore throat pain, hoarseness, and helped the patients swallow. The researchers concluded, “Although the symptoms were very intense, the remedy was very effective.”

And if you’re a candidate for plastic surgery, Dr. Pescatore advises: “Be sure to take arnica! A new review of nearly a dozen scientific studies on arnica and rhinoplasty (more commonly known as a nose job) found that arnica successfully reduced post-surgery swelling and discoloration.”

Arnica can help relieve chronic pain too. “In fact,” Dr. Pescatore notes, “a study in the journal Rheumatology International found that arnica was just as effective as ibuprofen (Advil®, Motrin®) in relieving pain in hand osteoarthritis.”

If you use topical arnica creams, apply as directed. But when using arnica internally, Dr. Pescatore recommends homeopathic sublingual tablets in the 30x potency. He suggests taking five tablets under the tongue, up to five times each day.

Let’s go to the hops

And finally, Dr. Pescatore highlights one more “herbal superstar” of effective pain relief: Hops.

That’s right — the same hops that gives beer its bitter, zesty flavor has been shown to relieve acute and chronic pain.

In this case, Dr. Pescatore recommends a brand of herbal extract from the resin of hops called Perluxan®. This preparation is uniquely rich in a pain-relieving natural compound called alpha acids.

When these acids go to work, they inhibit COX-1 and COX-2 — the same pain-inducing biochemicals that are impeded by aspirin and other NSAIDs.

Dr. Pescatore highlights a clinical trial where using Perluxan® for two weeks helped relieve the chronic knee pain of arthritis. And he adds, “It didn’t take long for Perluxan® to work — the participants in the study got relief within two hours of taking the supplement. I recommend 500 mg, twice daily.”

You can find Dr. Pescatore’s specific recommendations for Perluxan®, arnica, and white willow bark extract, as well as two more highly effective non-drug treatments for acute and chronic pain relief in the Resource Directory of his Pain-Free Life Protocol.

Click here to learn all the ways this protocol can improve all types of pain issues, or to get started with this learning course right away.