Health
Repair Damaged Soft Tissues with
Topical Herbs
ESSENTIAL Naples
By Steven R. Frank
SPRING 2021
16
“Taking antiinflammatory drugs inhibits the healing process and although it reduces pain, it limits the extent of the repair.” —Steven R. Frank
T
endons attach muscles to bones while ligaments hold bones and tendons in place. Fascia guides muscle groups and allows them to slide over other structures. They all have a few things in common. Predominantly, they all mostly consist of collagen. This means that when they get damaged or excessively worn they need to be repaired by fibroblasts. Fibroblasts are like little elastic-tissue factories in your body that combine a couple of amino-acids with a vitamin C molecule to produce collagen. Your brain takes the clue from pain in a region to determine that it is time to turn up the fibroblast activity in that region. Turn up the fibroblast activity, create more collagen, repair the damage.
Collagen Repairs Damage to Tissue
When you pull or strain a ligament or mash/stretch or damage a tendon, you often get micro-tears in the tissue. The entire tissue may not be torn in half or may not even be pulled completely from the bone, but it will require collagen repair to regain its full strength and be able to handle a full load. When the damage occurs, there is local pain and inflammation. This acts as a signal to your brain to increase the activity of the fibroblasts. Your brain signals the liver which releases enzymes to increase fibroblast activity. These collagen facto-
ries produce the materials to repair the damage. Taking anti-inflammatory drugs actually inhibits this process and although it feels good, limits the extent of the repair. If you must take pain pills, it is best to use acetaminophen products like Tylenol to control pain. These don’t stop the inflammation process that is critical in keeping the collagen production going.
Arnica Relieves Pain
In most injuries, there are little blood clots that form in the connective tissues. These microobstructions block the flow of nutrients and vital repair-constituents to the region. These blockages inhibit the repair. As we age, more of the small micro-capillaries in these tissues are also blocked with plaques. There is, however, tremendous benefit that can be gained by applying some simple herbs to the region. Enzymes within Arnica break-up micro-clots in damaged tissues and significantly enable the healing process. Also, Arnica contains constituents called prostaglandin blockers that relieve pain, and when this is combined with the natural salix of White Willow bark, the pain relief is terrific. Of course, the ability to break up micro-clots also means that the bruising will dissipate far faster and you will get greater flow to the region.
