Pancreatitis is defined as a health disorder, in which the pancreas starts getting damaged as a result of generating pancreatic enzymes. This disorder can lead to serious symptoms like tremendous inflammation of the pancreas, vomiting, nausea and in some cases even internal bleeding and damage of the lungs and liver.
Hence, it is very important to treat pancreatitis, before it can advance to the stage of becoming acute. These below mentioned herbs have been trusted for thousands of years and are still continuing with their reputation of treating pancreatitis.
Herbal Remedies For Pancreatitis:
1. Dandelion
Dandelion is a well-known herb even among common people today. The bitter principle of this plant called taraxacin has made it one of the best tonics for the liver, stomach and pancreas. It helps to clean the liver and blood, along with improving digestion. Cleansing the liver in turn boosts the production of bile. With increase in the production of bile, pressure on the pancreas decreases and as a result, the pancreas stops getting hurt and damaged [1].
Consecutively, as the damage of the pancreas minimizes, the resulting pain and inflammation also gets reduced. Other than that, scientific studies have also revealed that regular use of dandelion can actually strengthen and stimulate the activities of the pancreas. Dandelion tea acts as a tonic for the pancreas, stomach and liver and can be prepared by boiling 2-3 teaspoons of chopped grounded dandelion in 1 glass of water.
2. Turmeric
Turmeric is one of the most recommended herbs for pancreatitis as it is readily available in every household. Since turmeric is a very important part of Indian cuisine, it has been heavily used in Ayurveda to treat various kinds of diseases and health disorders, including pancreatitis.[2]
Turmeric is the only natural source of curcumin, a type of volatile oil that behaves in the same way as NSAID medications and has been found to be as effective as NSAIDs.Several clinical studies have shown that the medicinal properties of turmeric can actually prevent pancreatitis from becoming acute or chronic.
The medicinal properties of turmeric have also been proven to prevent lung damage caused due to pancreatitis. The other reason which can be responsible for turmeric’s effectiveness is its vitamin C content, as doctors say that taking vitamin C can actually help the body to recover from the damage incurred by pancreatitis.
3. Milk Thistle
Milk thistle is one of those cholagogue herbs, which have been trusted by herbalists for over thousands of years to treat a damaged, liver, pancreas and stomach. Silymarin, a type of flavonoid has given this herbaceous plant the power to deal with liver damages [3].
Being used as a liver tonic, the extracts of milk thistle help to neutralize all sorts of liver damages, other than protecting the liver as a whole. Other than that, milk thistle is also a source of vitamin E, which helps to treat and regenerate the cells of the liver and pancreas, which get damaged as a result of pancreatitis.
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4. Olive Oil
The most preferred cooking oil is also a great herbal remedy for pancreatitis. While flavonoids prevent the pancreas from getting damaged, the anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties of olive oil are exceptionally useful for reducing the tremendous pain and inflammation associated with pancreatitis [4].
For patients suffering from pancreatitis, it is better to use olive oil as the cooking medium as that will provide them with an additional power to get healed.
5. Licorice
Licorice root has been used as a traditional Chinese herb for treating an array of health disorders, which also includes pancreatitis. Deglycyrrhizinated licorice (DGL) is one of the major bioactive compounds found in licorice, which can be the major reason behind the herb’s effectiveness for treating pancreatitis [5].
Licorice being a bitter herb also acts as a liver and stomach tonic, which in turn helps to heal the pancreas. To top that, the triterpenes like glycyrrhetic acid (GA) and glycyrrhizin present in licorice are potent anti-inflammatory agents, which help to reduce the associated inflammation and pain to a great extent.
