(Photo above: Licensed Acupuncturist and Herbalist Cathy Margolin)
One Oregon wellness company intends to help stem the opioid epidemic that is affecting our country as innumerable individuals afflicted with pain have become addicted to painkillers. Licensed Acupuncturist and Herbalist Cathy Margolin has developed a comprehensive line of health products created from Chinese herbs that treat everything from anxiety and sleep challenges to women’s issues through her Bend, Oregon-based company Pacific Herbs.
One formulation based on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is Corydalis Natural Pain Relief and specifically designed for pain. Corydalis Natural Pain Relief is a mixture of corydalis root and other TCM herbs, including turmeric. According to Margolin the synergistic combination of these herbs is especially beneficial when pain is mixed with inflammation, such as post-surgery, with headaches or with chronic or acute orthopedic pain.
“Pacific Herbs’ formulas harness the power of herbs like corydalis recently found to block pain receptors in the brain,” explains Margolin. Corydalis Natural Pain Relief can be helpful for many types of pain and can be safely consumed long-term without creating other harmful side effects. Studies from the University of California, Irvine have confirmed that this plant root can be effective in managing low to moderate chronic pain, as it has been used for thousands of years in Chinese medicine.
The formulation of this product is granular, as with other Pacific Herbs supplements, and can be dissolved in warm water and consumed as a tea, or placed directly into the mouth and swallowed with water. The granule consistency eliminates the need for fillers and allows quick absorption in the body, often within 20 to 30 minutes.
The research backing Corydalis Natural Pain Relief is particularly timely in Oregon, as the state has led the nation in nonmedical use of prescription opioids. Opioid overdose fatalities in Oregon increased five-fold between 2000 and 2006 and stabilized between 4 and 5 deaths per 100,000 from 2006 to 2011. During a six-month period from October 2011 through April 2012, Oregon pharmacies filled 1,872,534 prescriptions for an opioid analgesic (i.e., hydrocodone, oxycodone, morphine, methadone, fentanyl, or hydromorphone) to 611,985 unique individuals, according to Oregon’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program.
Oregon House Bill #2114, which passed the State House of Representatives, is soon going before the Oregon Senate for a vote. The measure encourages doctors to stop prescribing opioids, as widespread abuse of prescription pain medication takes its toll on many in our communities, devastating lives and families, and affecting one’s ability to work and hold a job. An alternative, drug-free solution to pain is something desperately needed to help address this systemic problem.
Pacific Herbs’ Corydalis Natural Pain Relief is distinguished by its American Medical Association (AMA)-approved billing code, which renders it an insurable item for many individuals. It is extremely rare for a nutraceutical product to receive an AMA billing code, so this is a huge milestone for Pacific Herbs. As it is non-addictive and doesn’t cause withdrawals, it is cost effective for insurance companies to cover Corydalis Natural Pain Relief.
Corydalis Natural Pain Relief is kosher, vegetarian, non-GMO, gluten free, and retails for $26 for approximately 18 servings.
www.pacherbs.com.
Cathy Margolin is a Licensed Acupuncturist and Herbalist and a Diplomate of Oriental Medicine. She has authored two books on balancing hormones with Eastern medicine approaches. Margolin is founder of Pacific Herbs, an herbal wellness company based in Bend, OR. Her first love is herbal medicine and she has dedicated her life to bringing the benefits of Chinese herbs and Traditional Chinese Medicine to Western audiences. Margolin earned a Masters Degree in Traditional Oriental Medicine from the Emperor’s College of Oriental Medicine in Santa Monica, CA, and a Bachelors Degree at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX. Margolin is a health writer for Huffington Post and several Oriental Medicine publications. She loves to lecture, blog and teach women and men about the benefits of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and herbal remedies. Margolin may be reached at cathy@pacherbs.com or by phone at 877-818-9990.
