Every time you stretch, lift or bend, your voluntary skeletal muscles work together to balance muscle movements. If you place too much strain on one muscle, you will upset the balance, which can lead to tight, constricted and weak muscles. When your muscles are unbalanced, you may experience pain and spasms that can last for weeks or months. Muscle imbalance can also cause pinched nerves, tissue damage and the excessive release of stress hormones. Herbs may help relieve the pain of muscle imbalance. Consult your health care provider before starting herbal treatment.
Herbal Actions
Herbs that relieve the pain of muscle imbalance work in various ways. Antispasmodic and muscle relaxant herbs relieve pain by affecting your autonomic nervous system and reducing the muscle spasms and tension causing the pain. Analgesic and anti-inflammatory herbs will reduce pain and inflammation that may accompany the wear and tear on imbalanced muscles. Nervine herbs help with pain that affects pinched nerves, as in the case of sciatica, and with the control of stress hormones. Check with a qualified practitioner for advice about dosage and preparation of these herbs.
Cramp Bark
Cramp bark, or Viburnum opulus, is a Mediterranean shrub with white flowers and red berries. Herbalists use the bark to relieve muscle cramps, hypertension and menstrual disorders. In his 2003 book, "Medical Herbalism: The Science and Practice of Herbal Medicine," clinical herbalist David Hoffmann, FNIMH, AHG, recommends cramp bark to relieve spasms and tension that affect voluntary muscles. The active ingredients include two coumarins known as scopoletin and esculetin. These chemicals are potent antispasmodics, anti-inflammatories, muscle relaxants and analgesics. Do not combine cramp bark with anticoagulant medicine.
Kava
Kava, or Piper methysticum, is a woody shrub native to Polynesia. Traditional healers use the rhizomes and roots to treat insomnia, stress and anxiety. Hoffmann states that kava is a muscle relaxant, useful for skeletal muscle spasms and tension. In their 2001 book, "Herbal Remedies," naturopathic doctors Asa Hershoff and Andrea Rotelli note that kava is a pain reliever and will also enhance the action of aspirin and other pain relief drugs. Active ingredients in kava, known as kavalactones, bind to neuroreceptors in your brain to produce their relaxing effects on imbalanced muscles. Do not combine kava with other sedatives or antidepressants. Do not use during pregnancy.
Jamaican Dogwood
Jamaican dogwood, or Piscidia erythrina, is a native of Central America, where it's also used as a fish poison. Herbalists use the stems to treat pain, asthma and whooping cough. The plant is rich in isoflavones, rotenoids, tannins and plant sterols and has pain-killing, nervine and antispasmodic actions. Hershoff and Rotelli recommend Jamaican dogwood to relieve tense muscles that pinch your nerves, as in sciatica and other forms of neuralgia caused by muscle imbalance. Use this herb under supervision of a knowledgeable practitioner and do not combine it with other sedatives. Do not use during pregnancy.
References
- "Medical Herbalism: The Science and Practice of Herbal Medicine"; David Hoffmann; 2003
- "Herbal Remedies"; Asa Hershoff, N.D., and Andrea Rotelli, N.D.; 2001
