Cayenne Pepper for shingles
I read with great interest in your herbal remedies section the uses for cayenne pepper regarding shingles. I have suffered from Shingles (Post herpetic) for 3+ years and am constantly in considerable pain. I have it around my waist and to my spine on the left side. I take no medication because nothing helps the pain. Whilst I fully understand you are an organic food etc website. I would be most grateful if you could give me any information regarding cayenne pepper as to its application. Whilst I understand there is a cream available from the chemist I was wondering if there was any way that cayenne pepper itself could be applied to the skin or made into a cream etc to apply externally. I would be most grateful of any help or advice you could offer.
Mrs B. Sedgewick
Thank you for your email. As I am not a qualified naturopath, I forwarded your enquiry to one of the world's most respected natural doctors, Michael van Straten. He has the following advice to offer:
Here's a traditional Dutch folk medicine remedy for post herpetic neuralgia which is always worth trying and is often very successful. Coarsely chop a couple of inches of fresh leek, then, in a pestle and mortar, crush the leek to extract its juice — the back of a wooden spoon and a small bowl works fairly well. Strain the juice and use a cotton wool ball to paint it over the affected area. Repeat morning and evening for at least a week.
Re: Cayenne pepper, be very careful applying this to the skin as it can be very irritant for some people. Try adding the tip of a teaspoon of cayenne to a dessertspoon of E45 cream, mix thoroughly. Apply a little initially to the inside of the forearm as a test patch. If you experience no adverse reaction you can then apply it to the area affected by the shingles.
I hope this is of help.
Ysanne
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