Back pain is a fairly common phenomenon, and it is difficult to find people who do not face this problem.
The eternal problem of "not enough time" to see a doctor is also a feature. Most people prefer self-medication. For this reason, they use actively promoted gels and ointments to eliminate back pain.
Along with these means, plasters are actively advertised. This back treatment has been known for a long time, but in recent years, it has not become popular until large manufacturers adopt it.
In order to understand whether this patch is really effective, people should understand the possible causes of back pain.
Why does my back hurt?
There may be many reasons for back pain. Among the most harmless are the minor injuries and sprains that a person may suffer during sports and physical labor.
Although, without paying due attention to such minor injuries, they may have very unpleasant "delayed" consequences, affecting the condition of the back muscle corset and the musculoskeletal system itself.
But under normal circumstances, this kind of slight pain will remind oneself for several days, and then gradually disappear.
But the most common cause of severe back pain is osteochondrosis and its consequences.
This disease is dangerous because it develops gradually, and in the early stages, when it can still be successfully treated, it will not show any actual symptoms.
In the future, this disease will become the cause of the development of various pain syndromes and the formation of intervertebral disc herniation.
If the microtrauma on the back can be ignored while waiting to stop causing the pain, then it will not work for osteochondrosis-when its consequences are manifested, it is impossible to withstand severe pain for a long time and must still be given to the doctor.
In addition, if minor injuries are successfully eliminated by temporary means, then serious back problems must be treated for many years.
The main cause of pain in this disease is the violation of spinal nerve roots. There are many reasons for this kind of compression, but it is this kind of compression that causes almost all pain syndromes.
The warming effect of the treatment of back pain
When treating back injuries or illnesses, doctors almost always recommend "dry heat" and necessary medications.
This usually means wrapping the affected area of the body with a warm, fluffy scarf-so that the back of the affected area "warms up" nicely.
This "dry heat" improves blood circulation, thereby reducing inflammation and edema, resulting in a decrease in the pressure of the compressed nerve root.
As a result, pain syndromes are reduced. Of course, this method by itself cannot cope with severe pain, but it is quite suitable as an aid.
Moreover, it can be noticed that most folk remedies for low back pain are based on this effect of warming up the affected part of the back. And without too much pain, these methods cope successfully, even though they don't allow you to get rid of the cause of their occurrence.
Warm up as an alternative to tablets
When back pain occurs, doctors usually give priority to medication. In most cases, such methods involve the use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which can quickly relieve inflammation and relieve pain.
Therefore, NSAIDs mainly pursue one goal-to reduce pain, and they can cope successfully in most cases.
But this drug has a serious drawback-the treatment of back diseases requires long-term use of them, and side effects begin to appear.
The most common of these effects is the destruction of the gastrointestinal tract. Therefore, for example, the treatment of intervertebral disc herniation can last up to one year, while taking NSAIDs that have no significant effect on the patient's body rarely lasts more than one month.
This has resulted in doctors being forced to prescribe such drugs in the smallest effective doses and to find alternative treatments.
First, they focus on gels and ointments, which are used in large quantities in pharmacies.
But in this case, half of them are not suitable because their overall effect is based on the effects of all the same NSAIDs. "Warm" ointments are much more expensive and less common.
Now another popular alternative is plaster, which is invisible and sticks firmly to the back, which can relieve back pain very effectively.
Type of back patch
Pepper paste
The oldest and "deserved" one is the mediocre pepper paste, which has been known for a long time. The principle of action is simple and clear-a special pepper ingredient is applied to the sticky surface, which stimulates and warms the skin when it comes in contact with the skin.
Perhaps the only drawback of this patch is the excessive aggressiveness of pepper, as long as the rules for using the patch are violated, it will cause severe skin irritation.
This will severely limit the possibility of treatment-the inflamed area cannot be massaged, and it is no longer possible to put another plaster on it or apply warm gel or ointment.
These shortcomings have become the reason for looking for alternative warming compositions, which will be applied to patches with the same efficiency.
No warming anesthesia-NSAID patch
Without further ado, several manufacturers decided to simply and elegantly bypass the problem of skin irritation-the same non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are simply applied to the patch, and they are gradually absorbed by the skin and have a therapeutic effect.
Thanks to this patch, the back pain is eliminated fast enough, the risk of irritation is small, and the problem of overheating is not worth it. But this patch also has disadvantages.
For example, if possible, they are definitely not suitable for those who prefer no "chemistry", because the main active ingredient is the same as the tablet, but enters the body through the skin, with the same unpleasant side effects.
Reflected heat
Another option is plaster, which contains one or another "reflective" coating. It is not as important as what the manufacturer specifically said, the essence is the same-the heat released by the human body is reflected and accumulated, resulting in a warming effect.
Of course, this plaster has almost no contraindications (because there is no active substance), but it is best not to stick them to the skin, but to the linen cloth.
"Miracle Plaster" from China
China has developed various types of patches based on local traditional medicine. The composition of this patch contains a lot of plant ingredients, each of which (theoretically) should have a certain therapeutic effect.
Such a patch is a very good choice for lovers of "natural" treatment. Its only drawback is that its effectiveness has not been proven.