Ginger/Feverfew Alternative for Migraines

Feverfew that flowering plant belonging to the sunflower family, has been around for centuries in European folk medicine as a treatment for headaches and other ailments.

Now new preliminary studies at the Headache Care Center in Springfield, Missouri, believe that it can be an alternative treatment choice instead of migraine medications which are costly, have numerous side effects and do not necessarily always work.

It has been estimated that around 12% of Americans endure migraines. Some people can get as many as ten a month but the average is around 1.5 each month. Estimations have shown the costs of migraines to be near $20 billion annually in medical care and loss productivity.

According to this new study which had been funded by PuraMed Bioscience, this homeopathic remedy may be a new alternative treatment.

In the study, patients had been randomly assigned either to take the homeopathic treatment (feverfew/ginger) containing very small amounts of the two plants or a sham treatment.

The patients then were instructed to treat themselves by placing a small bag of the preparations under their tongue, as soon as they noticed signs of an approaching migraine.

Among the patients, 45 had taken the homeopathic treatment and 15 had taken the sham treatments. Around one-third of those who had taken the homeopathic treatment had no pain two hours later in comparison to only half as many that had the sham treatment.

In total, 63 percent of patients taking the homeopathic treatment had seen some pain relief in comparison to 39% who had taken the sham treatment.

Dr. Roger Cady had remarked that even though the study was small it was not likely that those who had taken the sham treatment had experienced more severe migraines to start.

Dr. Cady believes it does not count for the difference of effectiveness in this study. Dr. Caddy is the director of the Headache Care Center.

Even though Dr. Cady believes the findings to be real, he himself is unsure exactly how the treatment would work.

The homeopathic treatment is called Lipigesic for about thirty dollars and contains several doses.

Dr. Cady states that those who experience migraines slowly have an ability to use early treatment before they do become severe and feverfew is an option.

Dr. Rebecca Erwin Wells an instructor with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center remarks that the results were intriguing but it is preliminary. She does mention however, that it is of importance to have studies on alternative treatments for migraines. According to a recent study conducted by Dr. Wells and her associates had revealed that 50% of American adults who have migraines seek out alternative treatments.

Chiropractic

Spinal manipulations by a chiropractor on persons who suffer with migraines have been found to be effective course of treatment for some persons.

Periodic adjustments can be used as preventive maintenance to keep headaches and migraines away. Numerous patients who have had chiropractic care note that having periodic adjustments has kept migraines away. There have been numerous patients in which report since starting chiropractic care they have had on more migraines/headaches.

Acupuncture

Acupuncture is another alternative treatment which can provide relief for migraines. It has been noted that those who receive acupuncture treatment have seen reduction in migraines, reduced medications, fewer doctor visits and days off of work.

Herbs, acupuncture and chiropractic treatments can all be used together or alone. Sources:

Reuters

Emed TV

Zimbo

Web MD