Having pain and swelling in the tendons of your elbow, shoulder, hip, knee, foot, and at the base of your thumb can be an extremely difficult situation. It feels as though you aren’t able to do anything at all since even the smallest of movements can cause you to experience a lot of pain.
Tendonitis is a long-term or chronic condition, which means that it isn’t likely to go away. You may feel temporary relief, but the pain and swelling may very well return and cause you more problems. With such a condition, you’re probably willing to try just about anything to get rid of the pain.
There are many ways to treat and prevent tendonitis, from different medicines to massage therapies and supplements and herbs. Let’s take a closer look at what tendonitis is, how it happens, and how to treat it. We’ll even go through the natural supplements for tendonitis that you should consider using.
What is Tendonitis?
Tendonitis is when a tendon – the part of the body that attaches the muscles to the bones – becomes inflamed and painful. As a result of the inflammation, the joints can feel tender and painful. Tendonitis results from repeated movements and overuse of the tendon or from an injury during some sports.
Most commonly, tendonitis affects the elbow, the wrist, shoulder, foot, and knee. Acute tendonitis, which is the result of some injury, can turn into long-term or chronic tendonitis if it is not treated properly. Although people of any age can get tendonitis, it is more common in adults and in older people. With age, the body’s tendons become weak and lose elasticity, because of which older people are more susceptible to tendonitis.
The most common tendonitis symptoms include pain that worsens with movement and, over time, a lump developing over the joint where the tendon is hurt, or swelling, inflammation, and redness of the skin. If treated correctly and rested, the symptoms may subside in a few days or at most a few weeks. But, if left untreated, or if further injuries are sustained to the same tendons, then the symptoms can last for months on end.
You can be at higher risk of tendonitis if you are older since tendons weaken with age, or if you are overweight, since being heavier puts extra pressure and weight on the tendons. You should also be more careful if you have pre-existing conditions such as diabetes or any inflammatory conditions such as Ankylosing Spondylitis or Reiter Syndrome.
How to Relieve Tendon Inflammation?
There are many different ways that you can treat tendonitis. As well as some precautions you can take to prevent it from occurring. The most common way to treat tendonitis is with rest, massage, and hot and cold therapies. Next, many over-the-counter medications can be taken or certain drug therapies as well.
A doctor may recommend different painkillers, topical creams/ointments, or steroid injections. A sling or a compression bandage is also helpful in relieving pain. There are also some traditional methods for relieving tendonitis pain, such as acupuncture, which is a traditional Chinese method of releasing the body’s natural pain-relieving hormones.
Lastly, there are natural supplements for tendonitis. This includes foods and herbs that you can add to your diet and that have anti-inflammatory properties and nutrients and supplements you can take via supplement pills.
Tendonitis can also be prevented if you take care to exercise and strengthen your tendons and muscles, avoid repetitive movements, and take breaks and rest between such movements.
Natural Supplements for Tendon Health
Let’s take a look at some of the natural supplements for tendonitis that you can incorporate into your diet or take in the form of supplement pills.
1. Bromelain
Bromelain is an enzyme that works to reduce inflammation in the body and treat muscle soreness and pain. Bromelain enzymes can be found in pineapple juice and in the stem of pineapples. Bromelain is especially useful for muscles soreness that is caused by exercise or the overuse of muscles so that it is perfect for treating tendonitis.
You can add bromelain to your diet very easily. Pineapple juice can be extremely refreshing and delicious and makes a great drink to have in the afternoon in the summers. You can also freeze it into popsicles. Pineapple also goes great in fresh fruit and vegetable salads.
2. Vitamin C
Vitamin C has many benefits for the body. It aids in healing, makes the immune system stronger, and also works to reduce inflammation. Vitamin C also increases the synthesis of collagen in the body, making it great for bone and tendon health. It helps in healing muscle and tendon injuries.
Vitamin C is very easy to add to your everyday diet. It can be found in many foods, including citrus fruits like oranges, lemons, grapefruit, limes, and berries like strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries. You can have these delicious fruits and berries as snacks, juices, or shakes.
You can also take Vitamin C supplements. We suggest the Amazon Elements Vitamin C Dietary Supplement (ASIN: B07122C9VC) tablets or the Airborne Original Vitamin C Chewable Tablets (ASIN B0096YTCFK).
3. Vitamin A
Vitamin A is very good for boosting the immune system and helping the body along in its natural healing processes. Tendonitis pain and inflammation can take anywhere from a few days to a few days to completely heal. Vitamin A would help in healing the tendons quicker.
Vitamin A can be found in foods like fish, meat, and dairy products. In meat, the liver has especially high concentrations of vitamin A. Three ounces of beef liver has up to 6500 micrograms of vitamin A.
Vitamin A can also be taken in the form of dietary supplements. Try out the Bronson Vitamin A Softgels (ASIN: B0006ZUS92).
4. Vitamin E
Vitamin E is an antioxidant and is important for helping many of the body’s organs function correctly. It also helps to reduce inflammation. Vitamin E can be found in both foods and in dietary supplements. However, both have different types of Vitamin E.
Foods that have vitamin E include vegetable oils, fruits, meat, and eggs. It can also be found in fish oil and evening primrose oil. You can get primrose oil capsules to increase your intake of vitamin E. Try the Amazon Reply Cold-pressed Evening Primrose Oil Softgels (ASIN: B07DR8PQ9D) or the Nutricost Evening Primrose Oil Softgels (ASIN: B07DR8PQ9D).
5. Calcium
Calcium is the most prominent bone mineral and is essential for maintaining bone health and healing connective tissues, tendons, and muscles. It helps to prevent any bone disorders, which could lead to tendon and ligament dysfunction. Calcium is very easy to incorporate into your diet. Milk and dairy products are especially high in calcium and leafy green vegetables like spinach and kale.
You can also add calcium supplements to your daily routine. We suggest trying the Nature’s Bounty Calcium with Vitamin D3 tablets (ASIN: B002FHL3DE) and the Now Calcium and Magnesium tablets (ASIN: B00028LZ9A) for supporting bone health.
6. Magnesium
Magnesium is a component of bone tissue and can increase bone density, heal connective tissues, and heal muscle and tendon injuries. Magnesium is required for various enzyme functions in the body, and it also helps the body regulate nutrients like copper, zinc, and vitamin D.
Magnesium can be found in plenty of foods and is easy to add to your daily diet. You can increase your intake of green vegetables, legumes, and whole grains. You can also have more dairy products, like milk, cheese, and yogurt.
If you want to add magnesium supplements to your diet, try the Puori Organic Magnesium Zinc Supplement (ASIN: B071S66Y49) pills. You can also try magnesium in a gel form with the BetterYou Magnesium Body Gel (ASIN: B06ZZX8JQS).
7. Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Omega-3 fatty acids are healthy fats that your body needs for growth and development. Fatty acids are great for bone health, bone turnover, and bone and ligament healing. You can get a healthy amount of omega-3 fatty acids from fish and seafood. Wild salmon, mackerel, and herring are all great options. You can also try to include fish oil and cod liver oil in your diet. Omega-3 fatty acids are great natural supplements for tendonitis because they reduce inflammation and add to muscle and tendon health.
You can also use some omega-3 supplements if you are not a fan of fish or seafood. Try the Freshfield Vegan Omega 3 DHA Supplement (ASIN: B07H9GL3Y8) and the Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega (ASIN: B0739KKHWL).
8. Turmeric
Turmeric is a spice that is used in many different foods and for its healing purposes as well. It is a bright yellow/orange spice used in curries and various other South Asian foods. It has a spicy, tangy flavor. Turmeric has been used to treat different conditions and ailments for many years, especially in Indian traditional medicine, Ayurveda.
Turmeric has anti-inflammatory properties and blocks inflammation-causing enzymes in the body. This is especially good for tendonitis, as it reduces the tendon inflammation and swelling and helps reduce the pain as well.
You can add turmeric to your diet by using it in different meals. It goes great in curries and meat rubs. You can also use ground turmeric in smoothies and dips.
9. Ginger
Ginger root has anti-inflammatory and painkilling properties and is one of the best natural supplements for tendonitis. You can use ginger for pain relief following an exercise or workout session or if your joints are feeling swollen and tender. The best way to have ginger is in ginger tea. You can buy some ginger tea bags or make the tea yourself at home using ginger root.
If you want to buy some ginger tea, we suggest you try the Organic Ginger Tea Bags (ASIN: B07SQX3853) or the Traditional Medicinals Organic Ginger Tea Bags (ASIN: B0009F3S7I).
You can make ginger tea at home by boiling a few slices of fresh ginger root in water for around thirty minutes. Let it steep well, and then strain the water. And you have your fresh homemade ginger tea!
10. White Willow
White Willow is a natural herb found from the White Willow trees native to Europe and Central Asia. It is also known as Salix Alba. The willow bark is used to reduce aches, pains, and fevers. It is said to have aspirin-like painkilling effects.
You can get white willow in a distilled tincture form and take a drop or two orally for pain relief. You can also use the bark to make tea and benefit from its anti-inflammatory properties. Try the Solo Therapy Organic White Willow Bark Herbal Tea (ASIN: B08PB9BP4N).
Our Final Thoughts
Although it may not seem like a very big deal, living with tendonitis can be extremely difficult and painful in the long term and can severely restrict your movements. It is better to make sure you get treatment and medical help for tendonitis as soon as you start to feel any pain or swelling so that it does not become a long-term chronic problem for you.
While you can always opt for medicines, drugs, and steroids to treat your tendonitis, we suggest that you try natural supplements for tendon health, as they are completely natural and would not have any adverse health effects. You can easily add them to your diet or take a supplement pill every day with your dinner.
We listed our top 10 natural supplements for tendonitis, and we hope that they help you prevent and heal any tendon pain or inflammation.
