Alison Odey

Haemorrhoids (also known as piles) very often occur much higher up the rectum than people realize.
What protrudes from the rectum and is visible and itchy is often only part of the problem, therefore to obtain effective relief the entire bowel needs to be addressed.

If there is bleeding occurring then the source of roughage in the diet needs to be very smooth – as in slippery elm powder or psyllium.
Do not eat anything that contains harsh roughage such as seeds, grains and rough skins etc, so as to avoid scratching and irritating delicate membranes. Continue to take slippery elm powder long term – at least one teaspoon daily as it is a wonderful nutritive demulcent and well suited to soothing sensitive or inflamed mucous membranes.

When using any sort of roughage it is important to make sure that sufficient water is retained in the bowel to enable the bowel content to move easily.

To make sure that this occurs, it is important to make sure that your intake of magnesium is sufficient, which often means supplementing, as in some parts of NZ magnesium levels can be very low.

However do not overdose on magnesium. To avoid this it is best once again to take Colloidal minerals as the magnesium content of these is well balanced with all
other minerals.
see pages on ‘Minerals – why we need to supplement’.

Also, make sure that your intake of oils is sufficient. This means essential fatty acids (olive, flaxseed, safflower, avocado etc), as oils also help maintain the water balance of the bowel.
Without these things the bowel motions will be very dry regardless of how much roughage you eat and this will just increase the likelihood of painful haemorrhoids.
See page on ‘ Bowel – Improving Action’

Traditionally the herb Witch-hazel has been used to shrink haemorrhoids externally. It can be diluted with water and dabbed onto the area several times daily.
The herb Horsechestnut can be used effectively to shrink haemorrhoids internally.
It will also help relieve varicose veins.