Hemmorrhoids-treatment
If you have hemorrhoids, join the uncomfortable club. At some point in life, an estimated one-third of U.S. adults--some 80 million people--suffer the rectal pain and bleeding that they cause,[1] and spend $200 million a year on products to treat them.[2] Chronic hemorrhoids affect some 9 million Americans,[3] and can turn sitting, walking, sneezing, laughing, and defecating into extremely painful propositions. "Hemorrhoids are varicose veins that develop around or inside your anus. Three veins drain blood away from your anal area," explains family practitioner Anne Simons, M.D., an assistant clinical professor of family and community medicine at the University of California’s San Francisco Medical Center. They expand (dilate) during bowel movements and shrink back to normal size afterward. At least, that’s what they’re supposed to do. “Unfortunately,” Dr. Simons says, “repeated straining during defecation--either from constipation, or as a result of hard stools--can interfere with this process, and keep those veins permanently swollen.” The swelling triggers nerves in the area, and you feel discomfort, quite often, pain. In addition, the swelling weakens your blood vessels, and defecation can rupture them, causing bleeding ranging from faint pink streaks on your toilet paper to bright red blood in your toilet or on your underwear. Hemorrhoids are quite common during pregnancy because the developing fetus places pressure on the veins of women’s lower abdomen, which interferes with normal blood drainage. Likewise, if you’re overweight, you’re at increased risk. If you have hemorrhoids, you almost certainly have another very common problem--constipation. “Constipation is the underlying cause of hemorrhoids,” says family practitioner Alan Gaby, M.D., a professor of nutrition at Bastyr University, the naturopathic medical school near Seattle. “The low-fiber diet that so many Americans eat produces smaller, denser, harder stools, which are more difficult to pass. You have to strain to pass them, so you get hemorrhoids.” Like constipation, your chances of suffering hemorrhoids increase with age. About half of Americans over age 50 have them.[4] “Compared with younger adults, older people generally get less exercise and drink less fluid--both contributors to constipation,” Dr. Simons explains.“In addition, rectal muscle tone tends to diminish with age, so older people strain more and are more likely to develop hemorrhoids.” Home Remedies Cancel constipation. Read the discussion of CONSTIPATION. Eat a high-fiber diet: more fruits, vegetables, beans, and whole grains, especially a bran cereal at breakfast. Limit your consumption of constipating foods (bananas, rice) and supplements (iron). Drink plenty of nonalcoholic fluids. Get regular exercise. Never ignore the urge. Establish a regular toilet time. Take care of business. Do one thing on the toilet, and one thing only, Dr. Simons says. Don’t sit there any longer than necessary. Don’t read, work, or watch TV in the bathroom. Even if you don’t bear down, sitting on the toilet puts stress on your anal veins. Limiting toilet time to relieving yourself also has a subtle but important psychological effect: It focuses your mental energy on the task at hand. Sit, but don’t strain. Try to relax on the toilet and just let things happen. Don’t strain or bear down, advises Alan Brauer, M.D., founder of TotalCare Medical Center in Palo Alto, California. Straining places considerable pressure on tender anal veins. Squat when you sit. Adopt more of a squatting position on the toilet, Dr. Simons suggests. Raise your feet on a small stool. “This helps many people,” she says. Wipe gently. The American Pharmaceutical Association (APA) says: Don’t wipe too aggressively or you’ll aggravate your hemorrhoids and suffer more pain.[5] Use plain paper. The APA also recommends using unscented white toilet paper. The perfumes and dyes in scented and colored toilet paper can irritate hemorrhoids.[6] Ice ’em. For swollen, inflamed hemorrhoids, Dr. Simons recommends an ice pack. “The cooling is soothing, and helps shrink swollen tissue.” Wrap an ice cube in a plastic bag and wrap the bag in a thin cloth. Apply the ice pack for 20 minutes, then remove it for 10 minutes before reapplying it. “But don’t place ice directly on your skin,” Dr. Simons warns. “You might give yourself frostbite.” Walk around. Hemorrhoids are an occupational hazard of long-distance truck drivers and others whose jobs require sitting for long periods. If you spend lots of time in a chair, get up and walk around every hour or so, Dr. Gaby suggests. The exercise helps prevent constipation. Sit on a doughnut. An inflatable, doughnut-shaped cushion, that is. If you have to do a lot of sitting, these cushions can be a godsend. They’re available at pharmacies and medical supply houses. Herbal Medicine Wipe with witch hazel. Let’s clear one thing up right away: Witch hazel has nothing to do with witchcraft. The “witch” is a corruption of the Old English “wych,” meaning flexible. Witch hazel branches are so flexible, they were used to make bows.[7] “Witch hazel,” says Maryland botanist/herbalist James Duke, Ph.D., author of The Green Pharmacy, “is a soothing, cooling astringent that can help relieve hemorrhoidal pain.” It’s the active ingredient in several over-the-counter hemorrhoid products, including: Fleet Medicated Wipes and Tucks Premoistened Pads.[8] “But you don’t have to spend extra for a brand name to use witch hazel,” Dr. Duke explains. “Just buy witch hazel water at a pharmacy and make a compress with a small cloth or cotton balls.” Aloe. The gel inside the fleshy leaves of aloe plants is a wound-healing astringent, Dr. Duke says. “Snip a leaf, slit it open, scoop out a little gel and apply it to your hemorrhoids.” Broom. The root of butcher’s broom (Ruscus aculeatus), an herb native to the Mediterranean, has a long history as a treatment for both hemorrhoids and the varicose veins that cause them. It’s still a popular hemorrhoid treatment in Europe--and with good reason, explains naturopath Joseph Pizzorno. N.D., former president of Bastyr University, the naturopathic medical school near Seattle: “Compounds in butchers broom, ruscogenins, have anti-inflammatory and vasoconstrictor effects.” The herb’s anti-inflammatory action helps counter the swelling hemorrhoids cause. Its vasoconstrictor effect helps shrink distended varicose veins. Dr. Pizzorno recommends 100 mg three times a day of a butcher’s broom extract containing 9 to 11 percent ruscogenins. If it’s not available at your health food store, a naturopath may be able to help you obtain it. Or, says Dr. Duke, you can obtain some of the same benefits by brewing a tea using five rounded teaspoons of the root per cup of boiling water, sweetened with honey. The tincture can be applied topically.[9] Gotu kola. Gotu kola (Centella asiatica) has nothing to do with the cola in soft drinks. It’s an herb native to India with a long history in Ayurvedic and Western medicine as a treatment for skin problems, including the varicose veins. “Several studies have shown that gotu kola enhances the integrity of connective tissue,” Dr. Pizzorno explains, “which improves blood flow through them, and produces impressive results in treating varicose veins.” He recommends 30 mg three times a day of a gotu kola extract containing 70 percent triterpenic acid. If it’s not available at your health food store, a naturopath may be able to help you obtain it.[10] Or you can enjoy some of the same benefits by making a tea with dried gotu kola leaves--one-half teaspoon per cup of boiling water. Drink one or two cups a day. Gotu kola tastes bitter. Add lemon or honey or mix in better-tasting beverage herbs.[11] Psyllium. Psyllium seed is a bulk-forming laxative. “It contains mucilage, a type of fiber that absorbs water in the intestine and expands a great deal,” Dr. Pizzorno explains. As a result, psyllium increases the bulk of your stool, which triggers the wave-like muscle contractions in the rectum (peristalsis) that you experience as “the urge.” “Several double-blind studies show that bulk-forming fibers like psyllium significantly reduce hemorrhoidal pain, itching, and bleeding,” Dr. Pizzorno says. You can mix a few teaspoons of this herb n water or juice three times a day, Dr. Duke explains, or use one of the many commercial laxatives that contain it (Metamucil, Correctol, Fiberall, Naturacil, etc.). However, Dr. Duke cautions, psyllium does not work by itself. It must be taken with lots of water. Hydrotherapy Warm water. Twenty-minute sitz baths a few times a day can help relieve hemorrhoidal discomfort and speed healing. Many mainstream doctors also recommend warm baths for hemorrhoids. Medical supply companies sell small plastic sitz baths that fit right on your toilet.[12] Visualization Therapy Imagine them shriveling up. New York City psychiatrist Gerald Epstein, M.D., author of Healing Visualizations, suggests this one for hemorrhoids: Close your eyes. Breathe deeply three times. While continuing to breathe deeply, picture your hemorrhoids slowly shriveling up and disappearing, leaving your anal wall pink, smooth, smooth, and healthy. Then open your eyes. Dr. Epstein recommends doing this visualization for a minute or two every waking hour until your hemorrhoids heal.[13] Over the Counter (OTC) Cocoa Butter. Cocoa butter soothes hemorrhoidal irritation. It’s an ingredient in several OTC hemorrhoid treatments, including: Anusol, Calmol 4, Nupercainal, Preparation H, and Wyanoids Relief Factor.[14] Anesthetics. Many OTC hemorrhoids contain topical anesthetics, among them: Anusol, Fleet Pain Relief, Hemorid, and Lanacane Creme. The problem with anesthetics is that some people are allergic to them. If you are, they can cause itching and burning, the very problems they’re supposed to treat.[15] Medical Measures If you have severe hemorrhoids your doctor may recommend treating them surgically.[16]
Works Cited [1] Pizzorno, J. and M. Murray. A Textbook of Nat. Med., V:Hemor. Simons, A. Before You Call the Doctor, p. 401. [2] Nat. Healing Newsletter 6-97. [3] Statistical Abstract of the U.S. 1997. [4] Text. of Nat. Med. [5] APA. Handbook of Nonprescription Dugs, 1996. p. 265. [6] APA. Handbook of Nonprescription Dugs, 1996. p. 265. [7] Castleman, M. The Healing Herbs, p. 545-546. [8] APA. Nonprescription Products Formulation and Features, 1997-98, pp. 182-185. [9] Green Pharmacy, pp. 251-2. [10] Textbook of Nat. Med. VI:Var Vei. [11] The Healing Herbs, p. 303. [12] APA. Handbook of Nonprescription Drugs, 1996. p. 265. [13] Epstein, G. Healing Visualizations, p. 125.