Treating Knee Injuries with Solomon’s Seal

There can be numerous forms of knee injuries that affect joints, tendons, ligaments, bursae and synovial fluids, bones, etc. Pain, inflammation, soreness and tenderness, swelling and heat are usual signs of a knee injury. One of the most common knee injury is that called “Runner’s Knee.” Because treatment and healing can be successfully self-administered, this frequent form of knee discomfort responds well to the use of herbal tinctures, salves, liniments and the like, instead of intervention using prescription medications that can disrupt other body systems. This article will help you to assess your knee discomfort, learn about your knee parts, and determine therapeutic strategies, including the use of Solomon’s Seal.

Treating Tennis Elbow (Elbow Tendonitis) with Solomon’s Seal

One of the most common injuries among sports participants and manual laborers is “tennis elbow”, a form of tendonitis associated with elbow pain. With proper care, lifestyle modification, and nonsurgical intervention this painful condition can heal itself. However, the symptoms must be recognized soon for optimal healing. This article discusses the causes and symptoms of tennis elbow, as well as suggested intervention, including the use of the herb Solomon’s Seal in tincture, salve and liniment form.

WHAT IS TENNIS ELBOW?

The exact cause of tennis elbow (lateral epicondylitis) is unkown. It is generally thought to be due to small tears of the tendons that attach forearm muscles to the arm bone at the elbow joint. The muscle group involved, the wrist extensors, function to cock the wrist back. Specifically, the extensor carpi radialis brevis is implicated in causing the symptoms of tennis elbow.

Bruises: How to Treat Them — and the Effectiveness of Solomon’s Seal

Bruises are usually caused by bumping into, or being hit by something. The result is a release of blood from the tiny capillaries under the skin. The characteristic bluish-black mark on the skin lightens in color and eventually fades as the blood is absorbed by the tissues and carried away. The ability to heal quickly from a bruise is dependent upon both a person’s general health and diet, and the form of therapeutic intervention. These subjects are explored in this article, with special emphasis given to the effectiveness of using Solomon’s Seal in some form — tincture, salve or liniment — and formulated with other helpful herbs.

Joint Pain and Injury — How Solomon’s Seal May Help

Joint pain and discomfort is one of the most common health concerns today. Millions of dollars per year are spent on treatment, medications and over-the-counter interventions. There are numerous causes for joint issues — disease, accident, stress-injuries from overexertion, environmental, even nutrition and diet.

Most people have little knowledge about how their joints work, nor do they understand the mechanism behind joint pain and inflammation. This article offers a basic overview of joints, including joint pain and inflammation. It also clarifies how an herb like Solomon’s Seal works to treat joint issues and to optimize their health.

How Joints Work

Imagine your body without joints — remove all joints from toes, ankles, knees, hips, fingers, wrists, elbows, shoulders, and neck. The result is that you would simply be a stiff stick figure that could not bend, rotate, properly walk, run, sit, or function in most human ways. To understand the mystery of joints is really quite simple: a joint is formed when two bones meet. Similarly, the mechanics of joint function is simple: ligaments, tendons, bursae, cartilage and synovium all work together as a system to seamlessly give flexibility. We can call this the joint system. It is this joint system that gives us movement and range of motion.

There are three categories of joints classified by the amount of movement they allow: fibrous joints which allow no movement, cartilaginous joints which allow limited movement (as in spine and ribs), and synovial joints which are free-moving (the most common type of joint in the body).

All joint issues are a result of a breakdown or dysfunction of one or multiple parts of the joint system that prevent basic movement. This article will help you know your joint system, and especially the unique way in which the herb Solomon’s Seal can help with joint issues.

Solomon’s Seal Tea: Healing Benefits

The wildcrafted root of the herb Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum biflorum or multiflorum) is widely known and used in tincture form (internally) or as a salve (externally). However, when prepared as a tea (i.e. herbal infusion) Solomon’s Seal root has unique healing benefits, as compared to tincture or salve.

The information available on the Internet about using Solomon’s Seal as a tea is not entirely accurate, especially suggested dosage amounts. The purpose of this article is to clarify the potential healing benefits of Solomon’s Seal tea for certain health issues, including its proper preparation and dosage.

Tincture or Tea?

First, it is important to clarify when the tea can offer superior healing and when it is more advantageous to use Solomon’s Seal as a tincture or salve. In some cases, the tincture and tea are interchangeable. If for some reason you cannot consume alcohol-based tinctures, than by all means try the tea. It has a mild, slightly sweet, nutty taste and is cooling and moistening to the body.

Solomon’s Seal tea, in particular, makes the best use of the plant’s excellent demulcent qualities (also referred to as mucilaginous or muco-protective). Mucilage is a polysaccharide substance obtained from the roots or seeds of a plant. A mucilaginous or demulcent herb is viscous and gelatinous, and thus protective and soothing to the mucus membranes and other irritated or inflamed internal tissues of the body.

Treating “Mommy Thumb” (De Quervain’s Tendonitis) with Solomon’s Seal

Mommy Thumb is the current nickname given to De Quervain’s tendonitis. Almost 50% of new mothers experience this condition, as described below. However, it is a condition common to many people who engage in repetitive hand or wrist movement, such as gardening, knitting, cooking, playing a musical instrument, carpentry, walking a pet on a leash, lifting a baby, and the like.

De Quervain’s tendonitis is not carpal tunnel syndrome, a pain that is usually centered on the inside of the wrist where nerves and tendons pass through a narrow tunnel-like space. De Quervain’s tendonitis involves just the thumb tendon, which runs through a canal at the base of the thumb at the back of the hand. Specifically, the protective synovium sheath of the tendon becomes inflamed. In most cases, the condition is not serious and can be easily treated. This article will help you identify De Quervain’s tendonitis and its causes, and suggest treatment strategies including the use of Solomon’s Seal tincture and salve.

Treating Dance Injuries of the Foot & Ankle with Solomon’s Seal

There are a number of common dance injuries, but they can be categorized into five basic groups: injuries of the foot/ankle, knee, hamstring, hip, and back. In this article, I will discuss injuries of the foot and ankle. According to Podiatry Today (http://www.podiatrytoday.com/article/3468), approximately 50% of the dance injuries are foot and ankle injuries, and most of these are due to overuse, as opposed to traumatic causes. This is because of the many repetitive movements in dance and the long hours spent in class and/or rehearsals. Ankle and foot injuries require immediate and ongoing attention, and continuing to dance with such injuries is not advised. Treatment typically includes the use of ice, rest, compression and elevation (RICE), and possibly immobilization. In some cases, daily stretching and an anti-inflammatory may also be prescribed. In more severe cases, steroids and even surgery may be recommended and extensive rehabilitation required.

Benefits of Solomon’s Seal Herbal Tincture & Salve

There is, however, an additional intervention that can prove most effective with acute or chronic ankle and foot injuries, or even be used preventively. Solomon’s Seal is an herb long known for its ability to strengthen, lubricate, and nourish tendons, ligaments, attachments and joints, tightening them if they are too loose and loosening them if they are too tight. Keep in mind that ligaments are tissues that connect bones to other bones, while a tendon is a tough band of fibrous connective tissue that most often connects muscle to bone. Healthy tendons and ligaments are able to withstand tension, but if they are too tight or too loose, injuries can result.

Treating Bursitis of the Elbow with Solomon’s Seal

A few months ago I awoke one morning with a puffy, soft inflammation of my right elbow. It was quite painful and increased when trying to straighten my arm. I immediately knew it was bursitis, but was puzzled as to how it came about.

When younger and engaged in numerous contact sports, I occasionally fell on my elbows. The swelling and inflammation was other than the result of a broken bone, and it went away in a week or so. I didn’t know anything about the anatomy of my elbow, so I didn’t take such falls too seriously.

However, this new swelling caught me by surprise, for I had not hit my elbow against anything! Upon research, I determined that I had unwittingly contributed to my condition by spending long hours, for numerous days, sitting at my computer finishing a project. During that time, my elbows were in constant contact with the hard surface of the arms of my chair. It was this firm contact at the bony tip of my elbow that caused the problem!

In this article I want to tell you what I have learned about bursitis of the elbow — its causes, symptoms, treatment, the elbow’s anatomy, and how I speeded my recovery by using Solomon’s Seal tincture. I am fortunate to have first hand experience with several conditions in which I have had success using Solomon’s Seal, and my elbow bursitis is just one example.

Treating Bursitis of the Knee with Solomon’s Seal

Think of your knee as an expensive sports car — a finely tuned machine that is capable of great power, but also highly vulnerable to breakdown. Over time, many things can affect knee functioning: mishap/injury, misuse or overuse of the joint, excessive weight, illness/disease. As we age, knee problems can become more common.

Significant and persistent knee pain affects nearly 25% of women and 20% of men. Your knees and hips — your largest joints — support your body’s weight while allowing your legs to move freely. Even walking at a leisurely pace puts a force that is double your body weight on each leg. Running or descending stairs quadruples that force. Two most common overuse injuries of the knee are Bursitis and Tendonitis.

This brief article discusses bursitis of the knee, its causes, symptoms and methods of relief, including the use of the herb, Solomon’s Seal. The key to understanding bursitis is to know the role synovial fluid plays as a “lubricating oil”. Solomon’s Seal is especially effective in increasing, decreasing or reinstating proper amounts of synovial fluid in the knee joints and tissues.

Treating Bursitis with Solomon’s Seal

WHAT IS BURSITIS?

Bursitis is the inflammation or irritation of the bursa. The bursa is a sac filled with lubricating fluid, located between tissues such as bone, muscle, tendons, and skin, that decreases rubbing, friction, and irritation.

Solomon’s Seal tincture is especially effective in treating bursitis, as discussed thoroughly later in this article. Its properties reduce inflammation of affected tissues, restore fluids to bursa and synovial glands, increases lubrication in joint areas, especially those affected by osteoarthritis, and helps to decalcify joints. Its known plasticity effect helps to restore scar tissue to near original condition, thereby aiding tendons, ligaments and muscles.

If you suffer from bursitis, this educational article discusses causes, signs and symptoms, prevention, self-care (most bursitis can be treated without invasive medical intervention or drugs), and finally, alternative treatment methods, including the use of Solomon’s Seal.

Treating Low Back Pain, Sacral Pain & Sciatica with Solomon’s Seal

Back pain is the second most common ailment in the United States – only headache (according to some, the common cold) is more common. Fortunately, most occurrences of low back pain go away within a few days. Others take much longer to resolve or lead to more serious conditions.

Most low back pain is triggered by some combination of overuse, muscle strain, and injury to the muscles, ligaments, and discs that support the spine. Over time muscle strain can lead to an overall imbalance in the spinal structure. This leads to a constant tension on the muscles, ligaments, bones, and discs, making the back more prone to injury or re-injury.

There are numerous possible interventions to low back pain, as noted later in this article. The herb, Solomon’s Seal, however, has demonstrated significant effectiveness as well and should be considered in any therapeutic intervention. Let’s first review the issues you may have with low back pain.

Healing Texting, Thumb and Repetitive Stress Injuries (RSI) with Solomon’s Seal: Part 2

Unlike my previous article, Healing Texting, Thumb and Repetitive Stress Injuries (RSI) with Solomon’s Seal: Part 1, this article looks more specifically at thumb issues, now being widely reported as a growing issue among texters, game players and computer users. I believe that if you understand the properties of your thumb, fingers, hand and wrist, you might better understand the potential healing effects Solomon’s Seal Tincture may offer in your convalescence.

Here is the key to understanding complications arising in your thumb as a result of texting or injuring it via a sport, avocation or occupation: For every pound of pressure that you push at the tip of your thumb, it is magnified at the base of your thumb, called the carpometacarpal joint (CMC).

It is estimated that people (especially teens) run a high risk of texting injuries if they text over 80 messages a day. This is about the equivalent of spending one hour a day only texting — repeatedly and rapidly tapping the thumb on a key pad. Add to this regular daily computer use and/or video games! That’s a lot of daily, sustained pressure at the tip of the thumb being magnified at the thumb’s base! (Note: there are other injuries associated with texting, as described in my article.)

Over time, repeated thumb use or injury can lead to problems: joint issues and nerve issues. In the most serious cases, excessive wear and tear and inflammation of the basal joint of the thumb can lead to osteoarthritis of the thumb. Thumb arthritis can cause hand pain, swelling, decreased strength and range of motion.

Healing Texting, Thumb and Repetitive Stress Injuries (RSI) with Solomon’s Seal: Part 1

The proliferation and use of PDAs (wireless personal digital assistants) such as Blackberries, and the significant increase in time spent at computer keyboards or engaging in video gaming has created a whole new generation of people of all ages experiencing hand and finger injury, pain and discomfort. More and more, people are depending on these devices to stay in touch with friends and family. However, an increasing number are beginning to pay the price for such ready access to the world.

Popularly called “Blackberry Thumb”, or “teen texting tendonitis,” this Repetitive Stress Injury (RSI) occurs because these devices rely almost solely on the use of your thumbs (not all of your fingers) for typing. Any device that relies on the thumbs for typing can cause this type of injury because the thumbs simply weren’t designed for such use. Additionally, there are also other stress injuries reported — wrist, forearm, shoulder, upper back and neck — as a result of constant texting.

Solomon’s Seal: Healing & Regenerative Effects on Injuries

We have an incredible capacity for healing ourselves. It does not matter where we may see ourselves on the wellness/worseness continuum, we always possess some regenerative capacity which can make us more well, or at least have the feeling of being well, in some way. The power of regeneration, and the role Solomon’s Seal plays in healing is worthy of deeper study.

If you contemplate life in terms of regeneration, a whole new way of seeing reality will open up: everything appears to be attempting to regenerate its existence in some way. Let’s discuss this closer.

I am Overweight: How Can Solomon’s Seal Help My Knee Problems?

Many people complain of knee issues related to: swelling, osteoarthritis, cartilage degeneration, and even the inability to comfortably stand up from a sitting position. Excessive exercise, aging, prior injuries, and even excess weight and obesity contribute to knee discomfort.

The fact that almost two-thirds of the U.S. population is overweight or obese contributes to most knee issues. Solomon’s Seal may be a helpful intervention, as discussed below, but the best advice is to remove excessive weight that severely impacts the knees and ankles. Let’s briefly look at the impact of extra weight on the hips, knees and ankles.