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The natural way to heal bruises fast
Bruising is an inevitable part of life, but it can also be painful and unsightly. Here’s what you can do to reduce the pain and help it go away faster.
What causes a bruise?
You had a bump, a blow that was strong enough to damage the small blood vessels under your skin. Blood escapes from these blood vessels, called capillaries, and seeps into surrounding tissue. For a while you see the traditional black and blue colors, which are the hallmarks of most bruises. As the blood breaks down, the colors take on a full palette of hues, from purple to green and yellow. Normally, bruises will go away in 10 to 14 days without treatment.
Although bruising will go away on its own eventually, there are steps you can take to reduce the pain and help it go away faster. First, reduce blood flow to the area with ice and squeeze to minimize discoloration. Then use the heat to stimulate blood circulation and help remove the accumulated blood. As long as the skin is not broken, a number of herbal ointments and compresses can help erase the traces of a moment of awkwardness that has left its mark.
Speed up the healing process
Apply ice as soon as possible. If you cool the blood vessels around the bruised area, less blood will escape to the surrounding tissue. There are plenty of soft ice packs available specially designed for injury, and most proven athletes have the foresight to keep two or three in the freezer. If you are not equipped, soak a cloth in ice water and place it on the blue for 10 minutes. Or use a bag of frozen vegetables wrapped in a towel. Take it off after 10 minutes and wait about 20 minutes before reapplying the ice pack so as not to cool the skin underneath too much.
If you have injured your arm or leg, immediately wrap an elastic bandage around the injured part. By tightening the tissue underneath, the bandage helps prevent blood vessels from leaking. The bruise won’t be that bad.
Reduce blood flow to the bruise to minimize discoloration. If you have an injured leg, for example, and you can take time out, sit on a sofa or lounge chair with your leg raised on a pillow, above heart level. If your arm is bruised, try to keep it above heart level when you are seated. Do you have a sports injury? Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you recover, including how much rest time you need.
Apply heat yes, but not at the beginning!
After cooling the bruise for 24 hours, start applying heat to bring more circulation to the area and help flush out the accumulated blood. Use an electric heating pad for 20 minutes several times a day. Be sure to follow the directions on the heating pad: To avoid burns, it should be placed on the bruised limb, not underneath.
Alternatively, you can apply a warm compress under or over the bruised area. A hot water bottle will do.
A warm comfrey compress can also provide comfort. Comfrey contains compounds that reduce swelling and promote the rapid growth of new cells. Prepare a hot herbal solution by pouring 2 cups of boiling water over 30 grams of dried comfrey leaves or 60 grams of fresh leaves. Leave to soak for 10 minutes, then drain. It is for external use only, so it is not for drinking. Soak a gauze pad or washcloth in the solution and apply it to the bruise for an hour. (Out of range… if the skin is broken or you have an open wound.)
Vinegar mixed with lukewarm water will help the healing process. The vinegar increases blood circulation near the surface of the skin, so it can help dispel blood that has collected in the bruised area. Witch hazel will also do.
Heal bruises with light natural rubbing
Arnica is a plant that has long been recommended for bruises. It contains a compound that reduces inflammation and swelling. Apply an ointment or arnica gel daily to the bruises. Try the Arnicare cream, $ 16 at the drugstore.
Take a handful of fresh parsley leaves, crush them and spread them on the blue. Wrap the area with an elastic bandage. Some experts claim that parsley decreases inflammation, reduces pain, and can make bruises go away faster.
Gently rub St. John’s Wort oil into the bruise. Although St. John’s Wort is often taken in capsule or tea form to treat mild depression, the oil has long been known as a wound healer. It is rich in tannins, astringents that help shrink tissue and control capillary bleeding. For the best effect, start this treatment soon after the bruise appears and repeat it three times a day.
Look for vitamin K cream at the drugstore. Your body needs vitamin K to help blood clot. Rub it in the bruise twice a day to prevent further bleeding.
Make your own anti-bruises and trauma arnica
No matter how hard we look, we have not yet found better than arnica to treat bruises, blows, trauma, bruises and bruises. Here is delivered for the community, the recipe for arnica coming straight from the empirical knowledge of our grandmothers.
- Crush 15 g of cinnamon peel (Cinnamomum zeyianicum)
- 15 g green anise (Pimpinella anisum)
- 20 g cloves (Eugenia caryophyllata)
- 60 g of arnica flower (Arnica montana)
- Macerate the mixture in 1 liter of alcohol at 90 °, in the shade for 10 days
- Filter and collect in hermetically resealable bottles
Several ways to treat bruises …
- Brush the bruised area with the arnica mother tincture made above.
- To resolve a bruise quickly, apply 1 compress of iced arnica decoction
– Pour 30 g of arnica flowers in 1 liter of cold water
– Bring to a boil and keep for 10 minutes, strain and let cool well before using - Against swelling due to bruises, trauma and blows, apply 1 poultice of fresh leaves of wild geranium such as: Crane’s beak (Erodium cicutarium) or Robert geranium (Geranium Robertarium). You can also rub in lavender oil.
- Against external contusions, you can make compresses of salt water, water lily leaves, parsley, geranium, St. John’s wort, angelica, burdock, plantain, walnut leaves.
Internal contusions
Against internal contusions, apply arnica tincture prepared as follows:
- Mix in 1 liter of alcohol at 90 °, macerate in the shade for 10 days, filter, collect in airtight bottles:
- 60 g of arnica flowers
- 15 g St. John’s Wort
- 5 cloves
- 20 g of balsam flowers
Take dietary supplements to treat bruises
Bromelain, an enzyme found in pineapples, Actually “digests” the proteins involved in inflammation and pain. Take 250 to 500 milligrams of bromelain per day between meals until the bruising has worn off. This enzyme is also the reason why pineapple helps digestion after a meal.
Use a homeopathic version of arnica. As soon as you get the bruise start taking one dose every four hours. Take four doses on the first day, then reduce your dose to two or three tablets per day as the bruising goes away.
For people who easily “mark”: The power of prevention
If you feel like you bruise too easily, you may be suffering from vitamin C deficiency.. This strengthens the capillary walls and makes them less vulnerable to blood leakage and bruising. Get more vitamin C by eating more peppers and citrus fruits, and take a multivitamin.
Increase your intake of flavonoids by eating more carrots, apricots, and citrus fruits. These help vitamin C to work better in the body. Grape seed extract is also a rich supplier of flavonoids. Take 20 to 50 milligrams per day.
People at risk of bruising may suffer from vitamin K deficiency, found in broccoli, Brussels sprouts and green leafy vegetables, as well as in supplements.
Be selective about pain relievers
Do not take doses of aspirin when you have just had a bruise, this can make things worse. Aspirin thins the blood, which means it accumulates more easily under the skin and makes this bruise even more alarming.
The same goes for ibuprofen (present in Advil and Motrin). If you think you are bruising too much and are taking aspirin regularly (to reduce your risk of a heart attack, for example), talk to your doctor, but don’t stop taking aspirin on its own. For pain relief, use acetaminophen, the ingredient in Tylenol. You can also try a natural remedy for pain relief (article to come).
Should you see a doctor?
If your bruising appears mysteriously, that is, in places you haven’t even injured yet, be sure to see your doctor. Sometimes bruises are the hallmark of serious illnesses like hemophilia, leukemia, and aplastic anemia. See your doctor if you have a bruise on a joint that causes swelling, if a bruise does not go away after a week, if it is accompanied by severe pain or fever, or if you have a bruise on your side of the head above the ear (this area is easily broken). Plus, there’s a gender gap at work here: In fact, women are at greater risk of sports injuries.