Disease Management

Proprietary Chinese Medicine to Relieve Headaches

Headaches can be very annoying; many people choose to take pain medications for quick relief. This may work for occasional headaches, but not applicable to chronic and periodic headaches. Headaches have numerous causes including blood vessel or muscle disorders, change of intracranial pressure, injuries, mental stress, general diseases, drug abuse, or ear, nose and nasal disorders. Headache symptoms are manifested in different ways, so it will be a great difference in the treatment strategies and drug applications. Nowadays, over-the-counter (OTC) headache drugs are so easy to find, medication-overuse has become one of the common reasons of aggravating and frequent headaches, leading to the so-called "rebound headaches." If this happens to you, for example, you take OTC drugs more than twice a week to control your headaches, you should consult a doctor to help you reduce the dose or stop taking them. In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), appropriate treatment for headaches is not just to stop pain, but also should target on the flow of blood and qi (vital energy), the functions of the organs and the pathogenic factors. Only a comprehensive approach can get to the root of the problem and restore the internal balance of the body. Through the long-term practice, TCM has created many prescriptions to treat headaches, and in combination with modern research and stringent production, they have been made into proprietary Chinese medicine that are quality assurance and effective to different headache conditions. Since these products are herbal mixtures, each of them have distinct curative effects, they should be taken according to the headache patterns. Read the labels carefully and choose a product that most fits your particular headache, so as to get the maximum benefit. Otherwise, inappropriate taking may worsen your condition. For example, TCM often prescribes herbs such as Sichuan lovage, Dahurian angelica root, ledebouriella root, notopterygium root and Manchurian wildginger for the headache remedies, an overdose of these ingredients can deplete the qi and blood inside the body, which cause symptoms like dizziness and general weakness. For stubborn headaches, medications should be taken during acute attacks as well as the pain-free periods, so as to reduce the frequency and severity of headaches. The treatment should also be highly individualized, acting on the body gradually and for a sufficient period of time. In comparison with modern headache medicine, the effects of the proprietary Chinese medicine are gentle and slow, which are suitable for modulating the body gradually and long-term maintenance. When headaches are treated by herbal decoctions, physicians may suggest taking proprietary Chinese medicine to consolidate the efficacy and promote full recovery. Below are some of the choices for headache suffers.

TCM headache type	Wind-cold headaches
Indications	Headaches triggered or aggravated in cold and windy environments Or more frequent during the winter months Or accompanied with chills, fever and a stuffy nose Or induced by common cold
Sample products	Tea-Blended Sichuan Lovage Pills (chuan xiong cha tiao wan) Capital-Liang Pill (du liang wan)
Remark	Not recommended for weakened and chronic conditions

TCM headache type	Wind-heat headaches
Indications	Headaches aggravated by high temperatures and alleviated by coldness Or more frequent during the summer months Or accompanied with fever, aversion to wind blowing, throat soreness and toothache Or induced by common cold
Sample products	Clear the Upper Pill with Sichuan Lovage and Chrysanthemum (xiong ju shang qing wan) Clear Dizzy Pill (qing xuan wan)
Remark	Not recommended for elderly and weakened people, and those with a weak digestive system

TCM headache type	Fire-heat headaches
Indications	Headaches aggravated by high temperatures, and alleviated by coldness and wind blowing Or more frequent during the summer months Or accompanied with dizziness, bloodshot eyes, ear ringing, throat soreness, mouth sores, gum swelling and constipation
Sample products	Clear the Upper Pill with Bezoar (niu huang shang qing wan)
Remark	Not recommended for elderly and weakened people, and those with a weak digestive system

TCM headache type	Liver-yang headaches
Indications	Headaches with a distending feeling, aggravated by anger or emotional stress Or accompanied with irritability, flushed face, bloodshot eyes, mouth dryness or a bitter sense in the mouth, ear ringing and poor sleep Or fluctuated blood pressure
Sample products	Gastrodia and Uncaria Granules (tian ma gou teng ke li) Granules of Goat Horn Prescription (fu fang yang jiao ke li) Calm the Spirit Granules (ning shen ling ke li)
Remark	Not recommended for elderly and weakened people, and those with a weak digestive system

TCM headache type	Kidney-deficient headaches
Indications	Headaches with an emptiness feeling, or just a vague aching feeling in the head, aggravated by emotional distress and fatigue, and alleviated after sleeping Or accompanied with dizziness, blurred vision, ear ringing, fatigue, lumbar soreness, knee weakness, emission in men, vaginal discharges in women Or accompanied with neck problems
Sample products	Rehmannia Pills with Wolfberry and Chrysanthemum (qi ju di huang wan) Gastrodia Tuber and Fleeceflower Root Tablet (tian ma shou wu pian)
Remark	Not recommended for feverish conditions

TCM headache type	Qi or blood deficient headaches
Indications	Headaches with dizziness, triggered or aggravated by emotional distress and fatigue Or accompanied with paleness, fatigue, palpitations, sweating and breath shortness
Sample products	Tonify the Middle & Augment the Qi Pill (bu zhong yi qi wan) Restore the Spleen Pill with Ginseng (ren seng gui pi wan) Nourish Blood Pill with Angelica Root (dang gui yang xue wan)
Remark	Not recommended for feverish conditions, abdominal distention and hypertension

TCM headache type	Blood stasis headaches
Indications	Prolonged headaches, steady stabbing or dull pain, aggravated at night Or aggravated during rainy days Or after a head injury Or usually occur before menstruation
Sample products	Gastrodia Tuber Headache Tablets (tian ma tou tong pian) Tian Zheng Wan
Remark	Not recommended for yin deficiency and yang hyperactive

On the market, there are many proprietary Chinese medicine, the products are sold in different forms such as oral solutions, pills, bolus, soft extracts, capsule, powder, syrup, tablets or granules. Find a reputable brand, read the label carefully and pay attention to details like indications, administration methods as well as contraindications.

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