Itching is a bothersome thing. What is so ironic about it is that when you itch, it is often due to something deeper than the skin. While contact dermatitis (touching metals or plants) is commonly associated with eliciting the famous histamine response) there are many reasons we itch.
Itching can be a side effect of medication, an allergic response, or related to digestive issues. While there may be immune, allergic, or digestive issues underlying an itching problem, it is still important to be able to stop itching quickly. It can turn you into a big green monster!!
Chinese Herbs to the Rescue!
A recent case was a woman in her 40s who had suffered from hives since her 20s. After a car accident at a young age, in her 20s, she developed a case of intermittent hives that had not abated her entire life. She would get small pin size eruptions and sometimes bigger welts all over her body, focused on her arms and legs. When it got more severe, the hives would spread to her feet and abdomen. When she arrived at my office at UNC, she had gotten to the point where she was waking up itching, and unable to really function at work. She would develop these almost every year, usually triggered by an increase in her stress level at work. After many courses of steroids and conventional dermatological treatments, she got frustrated with the “no cure” status and came to me for alternatives.
I used a formula by Evergreen Herbs for itching. This contains a potent blend of herbs that immediately detoxify the blood and improve the body’s ability to circulate fresh oxygenated blood to the skin, a strategy that proved successful and lasting.
Blood is not just a substance in Chinese medicine, it is also a functional entity that can become deficient, or stagnated, and this can lead to dry conditions with itching.
With the combination of acupuncture and herbs, this patient stopped itching! By the 2nd month of taking the herbs, she stated that she finally had a day of no itching, which then turned into a week, and then an entire month. She has remained itch-free for over 6 months now.
- Yamaguchi-Miyamoto T1, Kawasuji T, Kuraishi Y, Suzuki H.,Biol Pharm Bull. 2003 May;26(5):722-4.
Channel Acupuncture & Herbs 