Headache? Skip antibiotics and use these powerful pain-relieving spices and herbs

Antibiotics resistance is fast becoming a grave concern. Instead of resorting to antibiotics for certain health problems like headaches, you can try dealing with them naturally. Here's how.

Over-consumption of antibiotics is a growing problem in India and across the world. Our dependence on antibiotics is making us antibiotic-resistance. Besides, antibiotics have long been associated with a number of health risks. These include gastrointestinal distress since antibiotics kill both bad and good bacteria in the gut, kidney stones and even obesity. This is why as far as possible, we must try resorting to natural remedies instead of taking antibiotics. When it comes to headaches and migraines, the same rule applies. Thankfully, nature provides us with a number of spices and herbs that could help alleviate the pain and beat the other symptoms to make us feel better. Here are some spices and herbs for headache you must try using.

Asafoetida or hing: This spice contains antioxidants and compounds which alleviate pain. All you need to do is mix half a tsp of hing in a glass of warm water and sip it. You could also apply hing and lemon juice to your head for relief.

Ginger: Among the many health benefits of ginger is its ability to inhibit the synthesis of prostaglandins which can worsen an inflammation and trigger headache. Just crush an inch of ginger in warm water and drink it to get relief. You could also try sipping on ginger chai.

Peppermint: The presence of cetaldehyde, amyl alcohol, menthyl esters, limone, pinene, phellandrene, cadinene, pugelone, and dimethyl sulphide help with pain relief. You could try drinking peppermint tea.

Ajwain or carom seeds: Rich in essential oils, ajwain has a high thymol content, a pain-relieving compound. The best way to use carom seeds for a headache is making a poultice of ajwain or chewing a few ajwain seeds.

Tusli or holy basil: A few crushed leaves of tulsi in warm water will do wonders when it comes to pain relief. Tulsi has powerful anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer agents.

Cloves: Adda few cloves in your tea next time for instant relief from a headache. Cloves contain phenolic compounds such as eugenol and gallic acid, which fight inflammation and bacterial infections. One of the many health benefits of cloves is that they are known to alleviate pain.

With reference from

Rodriguez-Fragoso, L., Reyes-Esparza, J., Burchiel, S. W., Herrera-Ruiz, D., & Torres, E. (2008). Risks and benefits of commonly used herbal medicines in Mexico. Toxicology and Applied pharmacology, 227(1), 125-135.