When someone has peripheral neuropathy they turn into a detective. Searching for anything and everything that can help. The pain in their feet, the numbness, tingling, and intense burning leads them to go everywhere to find something. One of the most common things that comes up are creams. Can a cream help my neuropathy in my feet. Are they an effective holistic or natural treatment for neuropathy. These are some of the big questions out there.
When I consult with a patient, the first thing I do is try to find out the root cause of the problem. So when we ask if a cream can help with neuropathy, the question I have is what are your expectations? Are you just looking for some relief of symptoms or are you looking for a cure. If you are looking for a cure, the cream is definitely not your answer. All of the thousands of patients I have treated a cream has never worked to cure. If you are looking for some temporary relief, then yes the creams might work.
What cream should I buy for my neuropathy. In my research and testing of creams, there is no real good answer. It all depends on your issues. When you apply a topical cream on your skin, your body has to absorb it for it to be effective. Your skin can act as a barrier. It determines what things can get in and what things don't. If your looking for a cream, I would test them all. Test them all to see which one works best for you. I would do a test of at least 7 days and apply them in the same area the same way. Make sure you are tracking and recording your outcomes. This is the first step in figure out what can work for you.
The advantage of these kinds of creams is that they can be applied directly to the pain site, where they act as local anesthetics, numbing the site to provide relief.
Many of these products contain capsaicin, a painkiller derived from chili peppers, while others use botanical oils.
There is also a medical grade topical cream availabl
e from my office which relies on a menthol base and is very effective.
Remember there are no miracle cures for neuropathy. Patients can get better and heal their nerves, it just takes the right place and the right plan that addresses your problem. Neuropathy can be helped and treated and even reversed, it just depends on what you do. Keep positive and do not let your neuropathy, foot pain, or neuropathy symptoms get the best of you. There is always hope!!
God Bless
Dr. Thai