AYUERVEDIC HOME REMEDIES A Simple Remedy for Joint and Muscular Pains Joint and muscular pains flare

up during the winter season. Ayurveda has very ef fective formulations to mitigate this pain. Described below is the method of making 'Karpoorathi thailam' a famous remedy fo r joint and muscular pains. This oil is applied on areas of pain and massaged ge ntly. For good results, a warm water bath 30 - 45 min after application of oil i s recommended. Though it is available in market readymade, the home made one is more effective. Now let's get down to the nitty-gritty of making the oil. The ingredients are 1 kilogram of ajwain (Bishop's Weed), 1 litre of coconut oil and 200 gm camphor. 800 gm of ajwain is powdered. This powdered ajwain is added to 6 litres of water and boiled and reduced to 2 litres. This is called kashayam. The remaining 200 gm of ajwain is then ground to a fine paste using water. Take a wide bottomed pan and pour 1 litre coconut oil into it. Add the 2 litre k ashayam to this coconut oil. Now add the fine paste of ajwain. Heat the mix and let it boil in simmering heat. Once you get a sort of sandy deposit at the base, remove it from stove. Place 200 gm camphor in a steel vessel and pour the somew hat hot oil into this vessel. Allow the oil to cool to room temperature. Now sto re this oil in glass bottle. Now the 'karpoorathi thailam' is ready. Apply it on painful joints and muscles a nd massage gently as explained above. Courtesy: Dr. Hareendran Nair, Jeevanam Some Ayurvedic Home Remedies and Tips for Joint Pain in Winter How to resolve osteoarthritis and rheumatic arthritis pain? This question bother s the elderly especially during winter times. Dr. Hareendran Nair provides a sim ple solution. Jeevanam is an Ayurveda awareness program telecast in Kairali TV on Saturday mor nings. Dr Harindran Nair of Pankajakasthuri Herbals India Limited answers the qu estions of viewers and also recounts his own experiences in treating various ail ments. He offers excellent ayurvedic home remedy tips both curative and preventa tive, for many diseases. A very articulate individual, Dr Nair is well known for his espousal of the Ayurvedic way of life. I view his program often and can vou ch for its usefulness. In one of his episodes he talks about the aggravation of joint pains during the winter season, especially among the elderly and suggests some excellent remedies . He mentions that rheumatoid arthritis and arthritic pain in general can be les sened to a great degree by following certain simple instructions. He insists on intake of easily digestible food preferably vegetables. This will help the digestive system to process the food easily. He advocates usage of carr ot, cucumber etc in plenty. He says that these vegetables have diuretic properti es and help eliminate waste products from our bodies. He also mentions frequent intake of an ayurvedic drug yogaraja guggulu if needed. Then he goes on to elaborate the role of honey and lemon in lessening the arthri

tic pain. He came to know of this remedy from some of his friends and experiment ed on it. He further refined it based on his own personal experience. Two teaspoonful fresh plain lemon juice and one teaspoon of honey (preferably ho ney obtained from small honeybees called cheruthen in malayalam) is added to one glass of warm water and taken first thing in the morning and similarly on empty stomach in the evening. Another alternative is, two teaspoons of honey, one teaspoon cinnamon powder (ka ruva) mixed together and taken once before bedtime. You can follow any one of the two methods mentioned above. Also, as an external application mix one teaspoon honey and one teaspoon cinnamo n powder to two teaspoons of water and prepare a thick paste. Apply a thin layer of this on the inflamed painful areas. Eat a piece of dry coconut everyday in the mornings. Follow this regimen for 3 months for a noticeable reduction in joint pain. This can be followed by people with diabetes also. Thus osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis pains can be eased without side eff ects. Ayurvedic Home Remedies for Rheumatoid Arthritis and Osteoarthritis The word arthritis means inflammation of the joints . It is, generally, a chronic dis ease process. Mostly arthritis occurs as osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease which usually occurs in the older age-group. Rheumatoid arthritis is a serious disease which affects not only the joints of t he fingers, wrists, hips, knees and feet, but also the muscles, tendons and othe r tissues of the body. Causes and Symptoms The main symptoms of osteoarthritis are pain and stiffness in the joints. The pa in usually increases after movement. It usually develops gradually over several months, with persistent pain and stiffness in one or more joints. Ultimately the whole body is affected. Given below are a few ayurvedic herbal and home remedies for Osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid arthritis. Potato Juice : The method of preparing potato juice is to cut a medium-sized pot ato into thin slices, without peeling the skin, and place the slices overnight i n a large glass filled with cold water. The water should be drunk in the morning on an empty stomach. Fresh juice can also be extracted from potatoes. A mediumsized potato should be diluted with a cup of water and drunk first thing in the morning. Other Raw Juices : One cup of green juice, extracted from any green leafy vegeta ble, mixed in equal proportions with carrot, celery and red beet juices is good for arthritis. The alkaline action of raw juices dissolves the accumulation of d eposits around the joints and in other tissues. A cup of fresh pineapple juice i s also valuable, as the enzyme bromelain in fresh pineapple juice reduces swelli ng and inflammation in osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Garlic : Garlic is another effective remedy for arthritis. It contains an anti-i nflammatory property which accounts for its effectiveness in the treatment of th is disease. Garlic may be taken raw or cooked according to individual preference . Castor oil : Treatment with castor oil has been found beneficial in arthritis. T he procedure, as prescribed by a Spanish doctor, is to boil two tablespoons of c astor oil over a stove burner. The oil should then be poured into a glass of fre sh orange juice and taken before breakfast daily till the disease is cured. This treatment is believed to have been adopted by an American doctor, called Dr. Ta ylor, in 1990. He advised his patients to take it for three weeks, wait for anot her three weeks and then repeat it again for another three weeks. It is, however , essential that the patient must take an alkaline diet while adopting this mode of treatment; otherwise the value of the treatment will be lost. Dietary Considerations : The diet of an arthritis patient should be planned so a s to produce alkalinity in the blood. It should include fruits and vegetables in the form of salads, and, at least, two cooked vegetables. In server cases, it w ould be advisable to put the patient on raw vegetables juice therapy three times a day, for about a week. Repeated juice fasts are recommended at intervals of e very two months. Some more herbal remedies for external use. Juice of Nochi leaves (Vitex Negundo) applied externally on affected parts bring s down pain considerably. Grind omam using water and make it into a thick paste. Heat the paste and then a pply a thick layer of the warm paste on affected parts before going to bed. Pour one teaspoon of onion juice in mustard oil two teaspoons and apply on the a ffected parts. Mix camphor in pudhina (mint) juice and apply on affected parts. Make a paste of dried ginger (chukku) and heat it. Apply the warm paste on affec ted parts. Disclaimer: All information provided in this is for historical and educational p urposes only; statements contained here are reported in an effort to preserve tr aditional cultural lore and information. Nothing here should be construed as an attempt to diagnose, prescribe, or recommend treatment for any disease or condit ion. Please consult your physician for medical advice regarding any medical cond ition and do not use any of the historical information on this site without your physician s approval.