Prostatic Acid Phosphatase (PAP): This Pain Relief is 8 Times More Effective Than Morphine

You probably are aware that I am not a fan of most prescription drugs but there are clearly circumstances where they are indicated.  I don’t know about you but I am VERY grateful for analgesics and anesthetics.

My last surgery was for an ingrown nail and it would be hard to imagine being able to tolerate that without temporarily blocking the nerves with an anesthetic. I was very grateful to have had access to that drug at that time.

Acute traumas frequently also result in injuries that will benefit by temporarily blocking your pain response. Of course these drugs are easily abused, but if used carefully and wisely I believe that they are a great advance in health care.

New Drug for Pain

PAP is being touted as a powerful painkiller with fewer side effects than morphine, oxycodone, or other current pain medications. Common side effects of these opioid drugs include: 

• Vomiting
• Cognitive impairment
• Constipation
• Breathing problems 

And, in the case of some pain medications, such as Fentora, the main side effect is death. Usually, your doctor will simply give you more drugs to counteract these side effects -- and those drugs will have their own side effects as well.

“Milder” painkillers are also far more risky than most people realize. There are plenty of published studies showing the dangers of over-the-counter medications. OTC pain medications, even such common ones as aspirin, are dangerous and potentially deadly. Taking OTC painkillers for six months or more can double your chances of dying from a stroke or heart attack.

So is PAP a Better Option? 

Possibly, but I’d wait a while and see before hailing it as the next great breakthrough. PAP essentially works by creating adenosine, which is known to cause side effects such as facial flushing, lightheadedness, excessive sweating, nausea, and asystole -- a brief heart stoppage. The effects aren’t usually long lasting, but when there are noninvasive pain relief measures available with no side effects at all, why inject any artificial chemical into your body?

Methods such as yoga, acupuncture, and even holding hands can result in astonishing pain relief without any drugs. And your emotions can have an effect on pain as powerful as any opioid, if not more so.

A classic example of this is the work of Dr. John Sarno, a physician who focuses on treating patients with severe recalcitrant low back pain -- so severe they went for surgery. But the patients he saw not only had surgery, the surgery failed. So his entire population was the worst of the worst low back pain patients. And in this very difficult group, he was getting over 80 percent improvements by only addressing the emotional element of the pain. 

The tool that has worked the best in my experience is a type of energy treatment, which can improve, or even eliminate, many types of pain. There are many types of these techniques but the one used the most is The Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), which is currently being used by more than 15,000 psychologists. EFT is not only a drug-free approach for pain management of all kinds, but it can also treat the side effects associated with conventional drugs.

EFT borrows from the principles of acupuncture, in that it helps you balance out your subtle energy system. It helps resolve underlying, often subconscious, negative emotions that may be exacerbating your physical pain. By stimulating (tapping) well-established acupuncture points with your fingertips, you re-balance your energy system, which tends to dissipate pain.

So, if you are searching for a solution for your pain, I would encourage you to learn more about EFT.   

A few other safe and natural ways to treat pain include:

• Ginger: This herb is anti-inflammatory and offers pain relief and stomach-settling properties. Fresh ginger works well steeped in boiling water as a tea or grated into vegetable juice.
• Boswellia: Also known as boswellin or "Indian frankincense," this herb contains specific active anti-inflammatory ingredients. This is one of my personal favorites as I have seen it work well with many rheumatoid arthritis patients
• Fish Oils: The omega-3 fats EPA and DHA contained in fish oil have been found, by many animal and clinical studies, to have anti-inflammatory properties.
• Bromelain: This enzyme found in pineapples, is a natural anti-inflammatory. It can be taken in supplement form but eating fresh pineapple may also be helpful.
• Cetyl Myristoleate (CMO): This oil, found in fish and dairy butter, acts as a "joint lubricant" and an anti-inflammatory. I have used this for myself to relieve ganglion cysts and a mild annoying carpal tunnel syndrome that pops up when I type too much on non-ergonomic keyboards. I used a topical preparation for this.
• Evening Primrose, Black Currant and Borage Oils: These contain the essential fatty acid gamma linolenic acid (GLA), which is useful for treating arthritic pain. I personally prefer the use of GLA supplements from evening primrose oil but borage oil contains a higher concentration of GLA, which means you need fewer capsules, and it tends to be less expensive.
• Cayenne Cream: Also called capsaicin cream, this spice comes from dried hot peppers. It alleviates pain by depleting the body's supply of substance P, a chemical component of nerve cells that transmits pain signals to your brain.