URTICA DIOCA AND ARTHRITIS

Benefits:  Relieves Arthritis Pain

Background:  Urtica dioca, or Stinging Nettle, has been used for thousands of years.  For example, in Bronze Age Denmark (2000 B.C.), nettle fibers were often used to make burial shrouds.  In ancient Greece, Stinging Nettle is known to have been prescribed for coughs and tuberculosis as well as arthritis.  Stinging Nettle was cultivated in both Russia and Sweden in the 17^th century for use as a fodder crop.  On occasion, nettle fiber has even been used to make textiles and paper!

Common Uses:  Urtica dioca also has a wide variety of common medicinal uses.  For example, the roots are sometimes taken as a diuretic or used as an astringent (a substance which causes the skin to draw tight).  The leaves are used to treat a wide variety of allergies, urinary tract infections, endocrine disorders and gastrointestinal complaints.  The young leaves, (which are  rich in vitamins, iron, zinc and chlorophyll) are sometime cooked as greens.  However, the most popular common use of Stinging Nettle is as an arthritis treatment; the herb has been used to relieve pain by direct application of the leaves to the affected joint for many years.

Description:  Urtica dioca is a familiar weed often found near human habitations, which thrives in nitrogen rich soils and grows up to a height of five feet.  It is a coarse, upright, spreading perennial with creeping, yellow roots and ovate, pointed, deeply toothed leaves covered with bristly, stinging hairs.  Minute green flowers with yellow stamens are borne in pendulous clusters in the summertime.

Cultivation:  This herb does best in damp nitrogen rich soils in partial shade.  Stinging Nettle is hardy from zones 3-10.

Parts Used:  Leaves and roots.

Harvest:  The top 6-12 inches of stems with leaves attached are harvested when the plant comes into flower.  The roots are harvested in the fall or winter (after the plant dies back) starting in the third year.  The leaves can be dried easily, but the roots may need to be chopped up to speed drying. (Note:  Always wear long sleeves and gloves when harvesting Urtica dioca; as allergic reactions are common!)

Preparation and Use:  Stinging Nettle root may be taken as a decoction several times a day; or the fresh leaves may be applied directly to the affected joints as needed.

Research:  Clinical studies have documented both anti-inflammatory and anti-arthritic effects from Urtica dioca.  For example, a 3 week study of 1528 arthritic patients [i] treated with nettle leaf extracts resulted in significant reported improvements in arthritis-related symptoms.  A different study, which examined the effects of a daily topical application of stinging nettle leaf to painful joints [ii] at the base of the thumb or index finger, also found significant reported reductions in pain after only a 1 week period.  Finally, a third study, which had patients apply fresh nettle leaves to painful knee joints [iii] on a daily basis for a week, found a majority of patients reported significant reductions in arthritis related pain as well.

[i]  Chrubasik S. et al,: “Evidence for the anti-rheumatic effectiveness of herba Urticaie dioicae in acute arthritis: A pilot study.” Phytomedicine 4:105-108. 1997

[ii]  Randall, C., et al. “Randomised controlled trial of nettle sting for treatment of base-of-thumb pain”. J. R. Soc. Med., 2000 Jun;93(6):305-9.

[iii]  Randall, C., et al. “Nettle sting for chronic knee pain: A randomized controlled pilot study.” Complementary Therapies in Medicine 2008: 16:66-72

TANACETUM PARTHENIUM AND ARTHRITIS

Benefits:  Reduces Arthritis Pain and Joint Inflammation

Background:  Tanacetum parthenium, or Feverfew, has been used medicinally since the first Century B.C.  Traditional uses included the treatment of fevers, headaches, stomach aches and insect bites, as well as asthma, nausea and dyspepsia.

Description:  Feverfew is a bushy, dark green, herbaceous perennial with pungently aromatic, feathery leaves which can grow up to 3 feet in height.  It bears small yellow and white flowers in the summertime which resemble miniature chrysanthemums.

Cultivation/Growing Conditions:  Feverfew does best in sunny, well drained locations.  In the springtime greenhouse, it may be easily started by sowing seed into growing trays set atop heating mats set to 70 degrees Fahrenheit.  Germination normally occurs within 2 weeks.

Parts Used:  Leaves.

Harvest:  Feverfew leaves may be harvested throughout the growing season, and used either fresh or dried.

Dosage:  boil two teaspoonfuls of fresh leaf in one cup of water, allow to steep 15 minutes.[1]

Research:  Feverfew has long been used to relieve the pain and inflammation of arthritis.  It is known to contain a substance called parthenolide which is believed to have anti-inflammatory properties.    Alcoholic extracts of feverfew flowers and leaves have also exhibited significant analgesic, anti-inflammatory and antipyretic activities.  These actions have been documented in several clinical trials which found that Tanacetum parthenium inhibits the production of inflammatory chemicals believed to be key contributors to the development of arthritis pain [i] [ii] [iii] at the cellular level.

[1]  PDR for Herbal Medicines, 4^th Ed., P. 324.

[i]  Groenewegen W.A., et al “A comparison of the effects of an extract of feverfew and parthenolide, a component of feverfew, on human platelet activity in-vitro.” J. Pharm Pharmacol. 1990 Aug;42(8):553-7

[ii]  Sumner H., et al “Inhibition of 5-lipoxygenase and cyclo-oxygenase in leukocytes by feverfew.  Involvement of sesquiterpene lactones and other components.” Biochem Pharmacol. 1992 Jun 9;43(11):2313-20.

[iii]  Makheja A.N., et al. “A platelet phospholipase inhibitor from the medicinal herb feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium).” Prostaglandins Leukot Med. 1982 June;8(6):653-60.

SYMPHYTUM OFFICINALE AND ARTHRITIS

Benefits:  Relieves Pain and Inflammation

Background:   Symphytum officinale, or Comfrey, has been used as a healing agent since ancient times.  (Symphytum is of Greek derivation, from the words sympho, meaning “growing together” and phytum, or “plant”.)   The Greek physician Dioscorides (50 A.D.) is known to have prescribed comfrey leaves for the treatment of broken bones.  Herbalists in the Middle Ages also recommended using comfrey salve to help promote the healing of bruises and broken bones, hemorrhoids and sore breasts.

Description:   Comfrey is a stout, vigorous perennial herb with thick taproots which can reach up to 3 feet in height. The large, dark green leaves are hairy and have a rough texture.  Pinkish-blue tubular flowers are borne in drooping clusters in the summertime.  Both the leaves and roots contain allantoin, a compound which is known to promote cell regeneration and tissue healing, as well as large amounts of mucilage, which acts as a demulcent (soothing agent).

Cultivation/Growing Conditions:  Comfrey grows best in damp soil in partial shade.  It is both invasive and deep rooted, and may be difficult to eradicate once established.  It cay be started by sowing seed into growing trays inside a heated (60 degrees F) greenhouse in the springtime or by planting root divisions in the summer or fall.

Parts Used:  Leaves and roots.

Harvest:   The leaves may be picked throughout the summer and used fresh for poultices, compresses or salves.  The roots may be lifted during the winter and crushed.  The liquid extracted from both leaves and roots is used for preparing salves and ointments.

Research:   Numerous clinical studies have demonstrated the ability of comfrey to relieve the pain of arthritis.  A study published in the Journal “Advanced Therapy” in 2000 [i] documented the effectiveness of comfrey ointment in reducing muscle and joint pain in 105 patients.  Another study in 2005 [ii] compared the effectiveness of two different creams with differing amounts of comfrey extract in treating 215 patients with back pain.  This study found that the cream with a higher percentage of comfrey extract was more effective and considered the results to be “clinically highly relevant”. In 2007 the journal “Phytomedicine” published a study [iii] examining the effectiveness of a comfrey root ointment used to treat patients suffering from osteoarthritis of the knee.  This study found that patients treated with a comfrey root extract had less pain and greater  knee mobility than patients  treated with a placebo.  Finally, and perhaps not surprisingly, a recent comprehensive review of clinical studies examining comfrey [iv]  found that comfrey root extract is “clinically proven to relieve pain, inflammation and swelling of muscles and joints in the case of degenerative arthritis…”

[i]  Kucera M. et al “Effects of Symphytum ointment on muscular symptoms and functional locomotor disturbances” Adv. Ther. 2000 Jul-Aug: 17(4):204-10

[ii]  Kucera M., et al “Topical symphytum herb concentrate cream against myalgia: a randomized controlled double blind clinical study” Adv Ther. 2005 Nov-Dec;22(6):681-92

[iii]  Gube B., et al “Efficacy of a comfrey root (Symphyti office. Radix) extract ointment in the treatment of patients with painful osteoarthritis of the knee: results of a double blind, randomized, bicenter, placebo-controlled trial” Phytomedicine, 2007 Jan; 14(1):2-10.

[iv]  Staiger C., “Comfrey Root: from tradition to modern clinical trials”, Wein Med Wochenschr. 2013 Feb; 163(3-4):58-64