Alleviate Knee Pain Naturally In Three Ways

Lots of things can cause knee pain. Arthritis, a sprain and other issues can leave you suffering through long hours of discomfort. The knee joint bears a lot of the weight of a person’s body and pain in that area can force you to sit out many different activities. Fortunately, relief is not as hard to gain as it may seem. These three natural ways to alleviate knee pain will help you to conduct your daily movements with less pain.
Rest and Ice

The R.I.C.E. method works well for knee pain that results from injuries. If you dance, run or play basketball and recently injured your knee joint during these activities, Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation (R.I.C.E.) will help. Resting your knee makes it easier for your body’s natural healing process to work as it should. Staying active on a knee that is already injured puts your body under pressure to heal the injury and manage all the other activities that you are trying to do.

Putting ice on your injured knee immediately after you get hurt helps to calm red, swollen tissue in and around your knee. Ice is cheap and is usually available in your fridge so you don’t have to rush out to a pharmacy to get it. In a pinch, you can even use a bag of frozen peas instead. Compressing your knee reduces swelling as well by adding gentle pressure. Reducing swelling speeds up healing.

Your knee should be compressed for a few days after you get injured. You can use a compression bandage to do that. This is usually made of elastic. When you are wrapping your knee, make sure you don’t apply too much pressure or you will reduce or cut off the blood supply and that will cause other problems. Elevate your knee above the level of your heart for as long as possible. That helps to reduce swelling.
Acupuncture

Acupuncture is used to treat a wide range of sports injuries and it can help with your injured knee. The knee is a complex structure and treatments that relieve pain are often a combination of several techniques. It doesn’t matter whether the pain is caused by a torn ligament, injured muscle tissue or a broken kneecap. Acupuncture works well, especially when used along with other therapies that reduce swelling.

A trained acupuncturist can help to rectify knee pain that is caused from a blow to the knee. They can also assist with osteoarthritis pain and Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injuries. ACL injuries can develop when you twist your body rapidly or land badly during a jump. This can happen to athletes or people who make a sudden movement while working or playing.

Acupuncturists can use electroacupuncture to treat several sorts of knee pain. Electroacupuncture reduces stiffness so that you can move around more easily. It also increases muscle strength and makes it easier to bend the joint. Sometimes athletes have to sit out an entire season of play because of their injuries. If you become injured, you should seek treatment as soon as possible and follow the treatment regimen that is recommended for you.
Ginger

Ginger is a natural anti-inflammatory. Researchers have shown that it helps to reduce swelling because it contains compounds called gingerols. You can drink ginger in a tea or make a poultice and apply this poultice to your knee. Ginger directly interferes with the production of compounds that play a part in the inflammatory process.

Making a ginger poultice is easy. You can use freshly crushed ginger or powdered ginger mixed with water and wrap it in a gauze. This is applied directly to your skin for at least 30 minutes. If you suffer from osteoarthritis, you may want to consider getting a bag of powdered ginger to keep in your home. This can be quickly used to make a fresh poultice when necessary.

Studies have shown that people with rheumatoid arthritis who consume ginger regularly experience a reduction in their pain. If you don’t like drinking tea and you don’t want to apply ginger externally, consider adding ginger to your meals. Use it to make ginger cookies, as long as having this sweet treat is okay. You can also use ginger in a wide range of Asian-style dishes such as stir fried chicken.

If you need to arrange an acupuncture treatment for your knee pain, call RiverWest Acupuncture in Portland, OR.