Cervical chondrosis in the early stages rarely shows itself with any negative symptoms. According to statistics, only 10% of people have a degenerative process with all the available signs, so it is difficult to recognize and start treatment for osteochondrosis in time. Traditional medicine can slow down the course of the disease in stages 1 and 2, so it is recommended to use it as an additional method.
Symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis
To choose home treatment, you need to know exactly the cause of the pain. Hardware diagnostics will help: X-ray, MRI, ultrasound.
The main danger of cervical osteochondrosis is for the brain, because due to the violation of the vertebral artery, the nerve tissue suffers from a lack of oxygen. Dizziness and severe pain with loss of consciousness are possible.
In addition to hypoxia, osteochondrosis of the cervical spine manifests itself:
- numbness of the arm, as well as the muscles of the shoulder girdle, shoulder blade;
- lack of coordination, unstable gait;
- if hypoxia affects the cerebellum, hearing and vision may be affected;
- weakness, fatigue.
Weak cerebral circulation is accompanied by irritability. If osteochondrosis is not treated, a person may experience an ischemic stroke.
When turning and tilting the head, a buzzing sound is heard. This happens because of bone growth - osteophytes, located along the edges of the vertebrae.
Pain sometimes occurs not only in the neck, but also in the chest. Such symptoms can easily be confused with angina attacks.
How to treat cervical osteochondrosis using traditional methods
There are several reasons that can cause degenerative changes in the intervertebral disc. Depending on the provoking factor, folk remedies are selected.
Reasons that lead to disc deformation:
- Obesity. The load on the spine and all joints in the body increases. Taking herbal tinctures will help normalize metabolism and lose weight.
- Thickened blood and lymph. There are herbal infusions that cleanse the blood of toxins and salts, as well as rubs that stimulate lymph movement. As a result, salt is no longer stored in the intervertebral disc and its elasticity is restored.
- Due to changes in hormone levels, women may develop osteoporosis in adulthood. Herbal supplements that contain estrogen-like substances can compensate for hormone deficiencies.
Traditional methods can be used to treat after spinal injuries, improve immunity, and control endocrine disorders.
Doctors do not recommend self-diagnosis and use folk recipes at your own discretion. It is necessary to conduct an examination, determine the cause of the disease, and only then begin targeted treatment. At the initial stage, it is advisable to use all available methods - traditional medicine, medicines, physiotherapy, massage, exercise therapy. You can maintain the effect achieved with the help of herbs, homemade ointments, water treatment and physical exercise.
Rub and compress
There are many options for preparing rubs for the treatment of neck osteochondrosis. This may be an alcohol-based medication or an oil rub.
Alcohol-based recipes:
- Chopped horseradish and alcohol diluted to 40 degrees (vodka will do). Mix both ingredients and leave for 2-3 days. Rub on the painful area for 2 weeks, then take a week off and repeat the course again.
- 200 g of crushed calendula flowers and the same amount of alcohol or vodka. Leave for 2 weeks, then apply to the back of the neck. Course - 2 weeks.
- For 200 ml of vodka, take 10 drops of iodine and camphor, mix everything. Grind 10 metamizole sodium tablets into a powder and add to the grinder. Use as a pain reliever during exacerbation of osteochondrosis.
- Rub from honey, vodka, aloe juice. Take enough vodka and aloe juice for 2 tablespoons of honey to make a thick mixture. It can be applied to the neck at night, then washed off. Also used as a compress.
- 100 ml of vodka or alcohol, 3 egg whites, 1 tablespoon of mustard powder. Mix everything together, apply to the skin, then rinse.
It is not recommended to use 96% alcohol because it can cause skin burns. Rubbing alcohol should be used with caution if there is a mole on the neck.
Rubbing without alcohol:
- Half a glass of lard without salt, 30 g of propolis. Combine the components, then apply to the skin before going to bed, wrap with a warm cloth.
- Prepare 1 tablespoon each of sage and plantain. Melt 40 g of Vaseline and mix with 50 ml of olive oil. Pour the herbs. Leave for 2 weeks. Rub the skin of the neck 3 times a day, then wrap it with a scarf.
- A teaspoon of red hot pepper, a glass of camphor, a glass of medical bile. Mix everything and rub your neck after lubricating the skin with vegetable oil.
The simplest but most effective recipe is to stir 3 tablespoons of sea salt in a glass of warm water. Apply the moistened gauze to the affected area. Relieves pain, improves mobility. With regular use, the symptoms of osteochondrosis are eliminated.
Compresses can be made from the following materials:
- Refined kerosene. Wet the gauze, apply it to the neck, wrap it with a film and a warm scarf. This procedure is done at night for 2 weeks.
- 2 tablespoons of honey per 1 fresh grated potato. The mixture is applied to the neck under a heating cloth. The course is one week.
Whole leaves of horseradish and burdock should be doused with boiling water or steamed, then applied to the neck and wrapped in a scarf.
Herbal tinctures and decoctions
The effectiveness of tinctures is higher than that of tea, because the substances from medicinal plants undergo long-term extraction from several hours to several days:
- Anesthetic infusion of pine buds. Raw materials should be collected in April, then finely chopped and covered with granulated sugar in a ratio of 1/2 - a cup of kidney beans to 2 cups of sugar. Within 14 days the mixture should turn brown. Take 5 ml three times a day; hold the mixture in your mouth before swallowing. To completely eliminate neck pain, it is recommended to take the medicine for 21 days, but often the pain in the vertebrae disappears after 2-3 days.
- Parsley root is boiled for an hour and a half, then taken three times a day on an empty stomach, one tablespoon. This product helps remove salt from the body. At first, a negative reaction from the kidneys is possible, because the excess will be removed through them.
- Garlic in lemon juice is a way to stimulate the immune system and improve the protective properties of the body. Grind 200 g of peeled garlic cloves, squeeze the juice from 4 lemons, mix everything and add a glass of water. Leave for 2 hours, after which you can drink half a glass after a meal once a day.
- Medicine against inflammation and relief of swelling in the neck with osteochondrosis. Boil a spoonful of mint and chamomile in 300 ml of water for 10 minutes. Drink half a glass on an empty stomach twice a day for 21 days.
- Pour boiling water over 1 tablespoon of cinquefoil - 1 cup. Leave for an hour. Helps with rheumatism and osteochondrosis. The course of treatment is 2 weeks or until the symptoms of inflammation disappear.
Allergic reactions may occur when taking some herbs. In this case, stop taking the tincture. It is recommended to try other drugs.
Therapeutic bath
For neck osteochondrosis, hot baths with additives help well. Such a procedure helps to relax the muscles. They should be done 2-3 times a week. Duration at least 15 minutes.
Before bathing, you can make a concentrated supplement:
- Dissolve 2 kg of sea salt in 2 liters of hot water and pour into the bathtub.
- To relieve inflammation in the acute period, add 50 ml of turpentine to the water. Soak completely, including the neck area.
- A bottle of pine extract must be diluted in water. Sometimes fresh pine needles are collected and boiled in a large container for an hour, then filtered and poured into the bath.
- Chamomile concentrate helps relieve inflammation and relax muscles. To do this, boil a pack of dried flowers in 2 liters of water for half an hour, leave for an hour, filter and add to the water.
If you have cancer, herbs and hot baths should not be taken. The same applies to hypertension and a tendency to allergic skin reactions.
Warm up
Treatment of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine at home can be carried out using heating procedures. However, you need to make sure that there is no inflammatory process. You can try using a heating pad. If the pain has subsided, then the warmth will be beneficial. Some people find that cold compresses help during exacerbations, while warm compresses only make the pain worse.
Contrast procedures are not recommended, for example, immersion in ice water after a steam bath.
Warm procedures work especially in autumn and winter, because people with osteochondrosis are sensitive to cold and weather changes.
Homemade ointment
Homemade ointments are just as effective as store-bought ones. It is recommended to try making a mixture of hop cones and lard. To do this, the collected cones must be crushed and the fat heated to a liquid state. Mix pine cones and fat in a 2/1 ratio.
If you can find a juniper nearby, you need to collect needles from it and grind them using a coffee grinder. You need 1 tsp.
Next, grind the dried bay leaves - you need 6 teaspoons. Mix both powders and add 100 g of homemade butter. The ointment acts quickly after use, eliminating pain in the neck or other parts of the spine.
Sea salt
Sea salt has a rich mineral composition, so it helps restore the layer of cartilage between the vertebrae.
The recipe with sea salt is the easiest and cheapest:
- For 3 tablespoons of salt, take 2 tablespoons of dry mustard powder, add half a glass of water and heat the mixture on the stove. Dip a small waffle towel into the liquid and apply it to the sore spot on the spine. While the compress is working, the person should be covered with a warm blanket. The treatment period is 1 month, but the compress should be done 3 times a week for 30 minutes.
- Mix 3 tablespoons of flour with 2 tablespoons of sea salt, add water and knead the dough to form a flat cake. Apply it on your neck and wrap it with a scarf for 3 hours. Apply the compress every day before going to bed for a week.
Three times a week, sea salt can be added to the bath or you can use a special preparation based on salt with chondroitin and glucosamine. In this case, the active ingredient will penetrate the skin.
What else can help?
In addition to herbs, tinctures, ointments and compresses, it is important to increase the mobility of the cervical spine to improve muscle tone. Through them, all substances will penetrate the cartilage tissue and regenerate.
If a person leads a sedentary lifestyle, osteochondrosis will develop, and traditional medicine will be powerless.
Massage for cervical chondrosis can be done, but it is advisable to entrust this to a specialist so as not to aggravate the situation, especially if there is a protrusion or hernia of the cervical spine. Before going to a massage therapist, you need to take an x-ray or get a referral from a vertebrologist, neurologist or orthopedic specialist.
Osteochondrosis is a disease of long-term development, so if it is detected at an advanced stage, one cannot hope for a quick recovery with the help of traditional medicine. Therefore, the patient loses time, and the disease develops during this time. In the early stages, the symptoms of chondrosis can be eliminated within 1-2 years, using all available methods, including traditional ones. It will take longer to treat the advanced process.