21/05/2021 - Anti-Inflammatory Herbs

 Anti-inflammatory Herbs

Inflammation is the body’s chief defence against injury or infection. It is a signal to the immune system to heal damaged tissue, as well as defend against foreign invaders such as viruses and bacteria. Inflammation can often cause localised redness, swelling, pain or heat and may cause loss of function of the involved tissues. Without it wounds would fester, and infections could become fatal. Inflammation is good in moderation however sometimes it can be inappropriate which is why it has gained a bad reputation. If the inflammatory process goes on for too long, or if the inflammatory response occurs in places where it is not needed, it can become problematic.

Acute inflammation, such as a sore throat, cut knee or sprained ankle, is typically a short term protective and localised response to infection or injury designed to heal the body and restore normal tissue function. If inflammation persists for a prolonged period of time it becomes chronic inflammation. Unlike acute inflammation, chronic inflammation can have long term and whole body effects.

Chronic inflammation can be the result of an infection, autoimmune reaction or allergy. This type of systemic inflammation can contribute to the development of disease, such as heart disease or cancer, and may also lead to autoimmune disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis and type 1 diabetes. A healthy diet and lifestyle can help keep inflammation under control. Conventional therapies for inflammation, including steroids and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), have many side effects. Simply shutting down inflammatory processes without addressing why the inflammation is present is questionable. The word anti-inflammatory, when applied to herbs, is a broad term. Rather than suppress the inflammatory response herbs can reduce inflammation by assisting the body to overcome the problem depending on the mechanism the body used to generate the inflammation (such as immune mediated or localised swelling among others).

Some anti-inflammatory herbs are:

Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla): Chamomile has long been used in traditional medicine for the treatment of inflammation related disorders such as eczema, ulcers, gout, neuralgia and rheumatic pains. It tends to reduce inflammation on soft tissue, such as the skin and mucous membranes, which is useful for digestive system inflammatory processes such as stomach pain, sluggish digestion, irritable bowel syndrome, diarrhoea and nausea.

Liquorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra): A powerful ability to modulate inflammation makes liquorice an ally both externally and internally to support skin health. Liquorice is especially supportive of the endocrine system particularly when it comes to long term, everyday stress. It nourishes the adrenal glands and is thought to help them produce the right level of hormones, especially cortisol. Cortisol is a potent anti-inflammatory that prevents the widespread tissue and nerve damage associated with inflammation. It is also a key player in the stress response and will fail to function with chronic stress. Hot, painful and irritated throats from upper respiratory infections can be soothed with liquorice which is also commonly used as a chest herb to relieve coughs, especially dry and irritating coughs. It is also famously used to heal gastric ulcers and to address dyspepsia, leaky gut syndrome and bacterial imbalances like those of Helicobacter pylori, a common cause of gastritis and peptic ulcers. Its anti-inflammatory benefits may also help relieve joint pain.

Turmeric (Curcuma longa): Turmeric is renowned for its ability to modulate inflammation associated with an extraordinary spectrum of infectious and autoimmune diseases including arthritis, cancer, digestion and liver health, skin conditions, heart health and type 2 diabetes. Sometimes it is referred to as a herbal anti-inflammatory however it does not act like an NSAID such as aspirin, ibuprofen (e.g. Nurofen) or diclofenac (e.g. Voltaren). In many ways turmeric is a lot more sophisticated because it acts in multiple ways. There is even preclinical evidence that the constituent curcumin may protect against gastric mucosal damage induced by NSAIDs however this is yet to be tested in humans.

White willow (Salix alba): White willow contains salicin (metabolised by the liver to salicylic acid) which is similar to the core material that aspirin was chemically manipulated from and in turn gave rise to the class of drugs known as NSAIDs. The irony is that salicylic acid, in the form of the chemical drug aspirin, is known to cause problematic side effects such as gastric distress, just as many other constituents are known to do when isolated from plants and the inherent wisdom of the plant is overridden. Whole plant extract of white willow does not cause gastric bleeding or distress because of the astringent nature of the other constituents, such as tannins, in the plant. The other constituents work with the salicylic acid synergistically by modulating and modifying its effects to help prevent and combat gastric bleeding. Because of the gastric side effects of aspirin there has been a resurgence in the use of white willow for the treatment of inflammatory syndromes. It is useful for connective tissue inflammation as seen in sports injuries and arthritic aches and pains. A small number of clinical studies have been conducted that support the use of white willow in chronic lower back and joint pain and osteoarthritis.

Written by Christine Thomas, Herbalist and Technical Writer, May 2021