This may seem personal and embarrassing but the sad and painful truth is that 20 to 50% of all people in the U.S. will develop hemorrhoids resulting in approximately 4 million annual office and emergency visits. Males and females can both be affected.
What causes hemorrhoids, what are the symptoms, who do they affect, and can they be treated and cured? Here is the Painful Truth about Hemorrhoids.
What do we Know about Hemorrhoids?
Even though they are the third most common outpatient ailment, there has been very little research done on hemorrhoids.
Hemorrhoids are piles, consisting of blood vessels and occur in the anal canal (tube at the end of the rectum). They can develop inside the rectum or outside. Symptoms can include the following.
- Inside hemorrhoids – painless bright red bleeding can occur during bowel movements and may be visible in the toilet or on tissue paper
- External hemorrhoids – painful, itchy, and irritating accompanied by discomfort, swelling and bleeding; hard lumps around the anus
What Causes Hemorrhoids?
In the past, hemorrhoids were blamed on poor low-fibre diets and constipation, however, this hasn’t been proven. Hemorrhoids are a result of increased pressure in the abdomen and can occur from the following.
· Straining
· Obesity
· Pregnancy
· Anal intercourse
· Heavy lifting
· Poor low-fibre diet
· Long sits on the toilet
· Chronic bouts of diarrhea or constipation
A few interesting statistics:
· Affects those between the ages of 45 and 65
· Common among the affluent
· Treatments are usually effective
· Thrombosed (clot) external hemorrhoids can cause severe and painful swelling
Treatments Available for Hemorrhoids
Hemorrhoids are often diagnosed during a digital rectal exam, anoscopy (lighted tube) or a sigmoidoscopy (lighted tube with a camera).
Treatments vary and can be medical or natural.
Medical therapies for hemorrhoids
Medical therapies can include medicated creams applied to the area, over-the-counter non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, rubber band ligation, infrared coagulation, and surgery.
Medicated Creams: These are not usually effective, however, they can help to alleviate itching, swelling and pain.
NSAIDs: Over-the-counter non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as Tylenol®) or Motrin® may be beneficial.
Rubber Band Ligation: Popular procedure used to remove hemorrhoid; the doctor will insert a small tube (ligator) through a lighted tube, in the anal canal and apply a small band at the base of the hemorrhoid which stops the blood flow. This will cause the hemorrhoid to shrink and fall off.
These are usually performed by gastroenterologists, colorectal surgeons or general surgeons.
Infrared Coagulation: This non-surgical method is painless and requires no recovery period. A tool is used that emits heat with infrared light. The heat clots the blood supply to hemorrhoids and causes the tissue to shrink and recede.
Surgery: Two types of surgery are often performed – Hemorrhoidectomy and Hemorrhoid Stapling.
During the first procedure, the surgeon will remove the tissue causing the bleeding. The patient can be given local anesthesia combined with sedation (usually through an IV), spinal (fluid is injected into the fluid around the spinal cord), or general (combination of intravenous drugs and inhaled gases).
During Hemorrhoid Stapling, the blood flow is blocked to the tissues. This is used for abnormally large internal hemorrhoids or prolapsed internal hemorrhoids. While less painful than the first procedure, there is a greater risk of the hemorrhoids coming back or rectal prolapse. Other problems include bleeding, pain, sepsis or urinary issues.
Natural therapies for hemorrhoids
If you are not keen on having surgery or the doctor/medical practitioner says it is not necessary, there are several home therapies you can try such as:
· Drinking more water
· Consuming high-fibre foods and/or a fibre supplement
· Warm water bath for several minutes a day – this relaxes the anal sphincter and increases blood flow
· Use gentle wipes or toilet paper with lotion
· Soothing creams that contain witch hazel, lidocaine, hydrocortisone, and phenylephrine (which temporarily shrinks tissues)
· Cold compresses to the swollen area
CBD for Hemorrhoids
While there hasn’t been a lot of research on using CBD for hemorrhoids, many studies agree that CBD might reduce pain and inflammation as CBD has anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties. Most people have a good tolerance for CBD.
NATURAL HEALING PROPERTIES
If you are against surgery, over-the-counter or prescribed medication, or CBD, you might be interested in trying H-HEMORRHOIDS FORMULA, a top-selling product by Healing Natural Oils. It has over 647 reviews.
This formula features:
· Fast reduction of swelling
· Fast relief
· FDA-listed, manufactured in the USA
· Suitable for external or prolapsed hemorrhoids
· Aids with minor bleeding associated with hemorrhoids
· Discreet packaging guaranteed
· 90-day money-back guarantee
· Available in two sizes ($34.95 – $69.95)
Reviews from verified buyers:
“This is an excellent product. It does work as intended. It has an anti-inflammatory, soothing effect as it works to shrink the tissue back to normal. An anti-inflammatory diet helps too. Amoils has proven a quality company with excellent customer service. Thanks.” ~A. PA
“Please let me tell you about a product that SAVED MY BUTT! LITERALLY! I am a 33-year-old guy who had several external thrombosed hemorrhoids. I had to take 3 days off of work because the pain became so immense that I could not function. Nothing was working. For an entire week, I tried creams and suppositories, but nothing worked. I found this product and took a chance on it. Within 3 days of using it, the pain completely went away and now 6 weeks later ALL of my hemorrhoids are COMPLETELY GONE! I still use it every day just to make sure they stay gone! This product saved my butt and it will save yours too!! Try it!” ~Kevin, Kentwood, MI
Conclusion
I think we can all agree that hemorrhoids can be extremely painful, uncomfortable, itchy, and irritating. Now that you know The Truth about Hemorrhoids and Remedies, no matter which remedy you choose, it is best to talk to your medical practitioner to help you understand your symptoms and make the best decision for you. We hope this information and the guidelines will prove useful in treating your hemorrhoids.
Are you or someone you know suffering from painful hemorrhoids? Please let us know what you have tried and the results you achieved (or didn’t) in the comments below. Sharing helps others.
Medical Disclaimer
Mary Ann shares her passion and personal experience with CBD and medical cannabis as well as the experiences of others. Do visit regularly to find out the ins and outs of CBD and medical marijuana products. If you are passionate about something and would love to share it on your own website, then click here to get started.
what was more interesting to me was the topic. As it was mentioned too many people are suffering from hemorrhoids and they find it so embarrassing. I agree that more research and time should assign about these kind of topics that most of people are ashamed of it. No matter how painful and itchy is the hemorrhoid the good news is that there are available treatment to do.
Yes, it is interesting that there is such a lack of research on something that affects so many people. As embarrassing as it may be, it would be no fun living every day in discomfort and pain. And as you say, the good news is that there are treatments available.
One thing about hemorrhoids other than being embarrassing and painful is the discomfort it brings to the person who has them. Although research shows that it is common among men and women between the ages of 45 and 65, I believe I had it in my early 40s.
I wasn’t sure at first but then I started having a bloody stool (feces) and didn’t know why. I got really scared because I thought I had colon cancer. I waited a few days before going to the doctor to see if I would still have blood in my stool. Good thing I was working in the laboratory so I can evaluate myself further if I needed the doctor’s help. And then I started feeling discomfort in my anus and I felt some kind of flesh protruding.
That’s when I realized I had hemorrhoids which I might have gotten from straining too hard. I was embarrassed to consult a doctor and I thought perhaps it would just go away naturally. I started eating high-fiber foods and drinking lots of water regularly. I also avoided long sits on the toilet.
Thankfully, it was gone before I knew it. Yes, the natural therapies for hemorrhoids you mentioned worked for me. I did not have to take medications or undergo surgery
It’s really encouraging to hear you say that you were able to take care of your situation without surgery which I understand can be quite painful. Even though you were embarrassed to go to a doctor, you took the initiative and tried some natural remedies. I am glad it all worked out for you. Thanks for sharing your experience.
Discomforts around the anal part of the body are always painful. But like you rightly said they are not always a result of poor diet but our lifestyle. Positioning contributes to this occurance. I once had sevre pains at my anal regions. It made sitting uncomfortable. I tried changing my diet but to no avail. I had to change my job function and reduced the rime i spent sitting down.
I know. Who knew sitting down so much and for long periods could actually affect us that way? I didn’t. It definitely is one area in our body we shouldn’t ignore. Even though they are treated with great success, I am sure there are many people who ignore the discomfort. Thanks for sharing how you handled it.