Muscle Pain

According to the Mayo Clinic, common causes of muscle pain are stress, tension, overuse and minor injuries.

This type of pain is usually localized affecting just a few muscles or a small part of your body. Systemic muscle pain, on the other hand, is pain throughout your whole body and is more often the result of an infection, an illness or a side effect of a medication.

Studies show that some people are more prone to common sore muscles than others. Muscle pain can develop almost anywhere in your body, including your neck, back, legs and even your hands. Although most muscle aches and pains go away on their own within a short time, sometimes muscle pain can linger for months.

Exercise is one of the most frequent causes of muscle pain. Muscles go through much physical stress when we exercise. Exercise physiologists refer to the gradually increasing discomfort that occurs between 24 and 48 hours after activity as delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS).

This mild muscle strain injury creates microscopic damage to the muscle fibers. Scientists believe this damage, coupled with the inflammation that accompanies these tears, causes the pain.

Treatment

Common muscle pain is normally managed with rest, warm showers and over-the-counter pain relievers such as aspirin or ibuprofen. Massage and alternating between ice packs and heat can also be helpful.

Certain medicinal plants also have proven healing properties for common muscle pain and would seem to be safer and have lower side effects than pharmacotherapy, according to research published by the U.S. National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health.

Here are four medicinal plants especially well-known for fighting muscle inflammation:

Ginger – Several well-documented studies have found that ginger’s more than 100 active compounds such as gingerol and shogaol can be effective for the alleviation of muscle soreness. Ginger is available as a tea, capsule or eaten raw. There are few side effects when taken in small doses.

Chamomile – Chamomile contains important flavonoids, including apigenin, luteolin and quercetin. Some alkylated flavonoids, such as chrysoplenin, chrysoplenol and jaceidin, have been identified in it as well. Chamomile is known to be a muscle relaxant. In tea form, chamomile may be helpful in reducing muscle soreness.

Turmeric – In traditional medicine, turmeric is applied for reducing inflammation and pain. The most important chemical component of turmeric is curcumin. In some experimental studies, curcumin has similar anti-inflammatory effects to some of the common nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), like indomethacin and ibuprofen.

Turmeric tablets are widely available, but an increasingly popular way to take turmeric is as a powder mixed into a tea, smoothies or even lattes.

Watermelon – The juice of Watermelon contains high concentration of citrulline and lycopene. Research suggests that citrulline may reduce muscle fatigue. It is believed that it can be used to reduce muscle soreness. As a bonus, the lycopene in watermelon juice is a carotenoid that may have beneficial effects on the risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease. Watermelon is also rich in vitamins A and C.