Alternative & Integrative Health Archive

Bed rest, once a key part of treating back pain, has a limited role in healing sore backs. In very small doses, bed rest can give you a break when standing or sitting causes severe pain. Too much may make back pain worse. Here is how to do bed rest "right."

To get the most from staying in bed, limit the time you are lying down to a few hours at a stretch, and for no longer than a day or two. You can rest on a bed or sofa, in any comfortable position. To ease the strain on your back, try putting pillows under your head and between your knees when lying on your side, under your knees when lying on your back, or under your hips when lying on your stomach. These positions reduce forces that sitting or standing impose on the back — especially on the discs, ligaments, and muscles.

For many people with rheumatoid arthritis, medication can help relieve symptoms and even limit joint damage. But nondrug approaches, such as physical and occupational therapy, are also essential to help reduce pain, improve range of motion, increase strength, and protect joints.

Specially trained clinicians can provide these nondrug treatments. Your primary care doctor or rheumatologist may refer you to a physiatrist, physical therapist, or occupational therapist, for example.

Q. I have developed bunions, making it impossible to wear most of my shoes without pain. Is there anything I can do to help the problem without undergoing surgery?

A. There are several things that can be done for bunions, which develop when the first metatarsal bone of the foot turns outward and the big toe points inward (toward the other toes), causing the joint to bulge outward. A podiatrist would be able to suggest ways to relieve your pain and prevent your bunions from getting worse. He or she will likely recommend different types of shoes, especially if you've been wearing shoes with pointed toes, high heels, or both. Podiatrists often prescribe custom-fitted padded inserts, known as orthotics, that are worn inside your shoes to help relieve pressure on your bunions. Surgery is usually a last resort, but your podiatrist will also be able to discuss the risks and benefits of different types of bunion surgery.

It can reduce discomfort and get you back on your feet faster.

For anyone who has been constipated, the promise of relief through medication is clouded by the possibility of developing a "laxative habit." However, a study published online Nov. 18, 2014, by the Journal of General Internal Medicine offers a drug-free approach to the problem: applying pressure to the perineum (the area between the genitals and the anus).

Researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles, studied 100 women and men with chronic constipation. Half were randomly assigned to receive handouts describing conventional approaches to relieving constipation, such as increasing fluid and fiber intake, getting regular exercise, and using laxatives and other medications. The other half got the same handouts, and were also instructed to use their index and middle fingers to press on the perineum at the first urge to defecate and continue until the stool passed easily.

Regular massage improves circulation, stimulates muscles, reduces tension, often eases pain

Your feet work hard for you every day. Especially at this busy time of year for many people — shopping, get-togethers with family, friends, co-workers, school events — there is no shortage of time spent on one's feet.

Just like your neck, back, and shoulders, your feet can also benefit from a regular rubdown. Foot massage improves circulation, stimulates muscles, reduces tension, and often eases pain. It also gives you a chance to check out your feet so you can get a jump on treating blisters, bunions, corns, and toenail problems.

Although more than 80% of women with breast cancer use alternative therapies to relieve the side effects of treatment, there has been no scientific consensus on which ones are safe and effective. Researchers from several major cancer centers have analyzed data on over 80 such therapies and created a set of guidelines to help women with breast cancer and their oncologists. The results were published online in Journal of the National Cancer Institute Monographs on Oct. 27, 2014.

Only a few therapies were deemed to have enough evidence to justify recommendation—meditation, yoga, and relaxation with imagery for anxiety, stress, depression, and fatigue, and acupuncture for controlling nausea and vomiting from chemotherapy. Acetyl-L-carnitine, a supplement used to ease nerve pain, was found to increase nerve damage instead.

Chiropractic manipulation of the spine provides limited and short-term relief from back-related leg pain, reports a study in Annals of Internal Medicine. Shooting nerve pain in the legs, or sciatica, is a common problem for men with back pain related to spinal disc problems or narrowing of the space around the spinal cord (spinal stenosis).

Diabetics get no help from testosterone shots

Getting a testosterone boost didn't help men with diabetes and symptoms often attributed to low levels of the hormone, according to a study in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. The 88 men in this small randomized clinical trial were ages 35 to 70 and overweight. They had type 2 diabetes and moderately low testosterone levels.

At the start of the study, the men filled out a questionnaire that asked about a variety of general symptoms sometimes attributed to low testosterone. These include fatigue, muscle weakness, depression, a general "blah" feeling, and sex-related difficulties, such as low interest in sex and erectile problems.