What is it?
The so-called horse ointment was developed in 1984 by the German pharmacist Dr. Ulf Jacoby. Originally, the ointment was intended for use on racehorses, as can be easily deduced from the name, and was intended to care for the horses’ strained tendons, fasciae and muscles and promote rapid regeneration. Since then, the ointment has made an amazing development not only in horses.
It serves as a household remedy for a wide variety of ailments and can be found in almost every household. There are different suppliers as well as compositions of the ointment, whereby the basic ingredients always remain the same. They are always extracts from certain plants.
Thus, extracts of arnica, rosemary, camphor and menthol are contained in the horse ointment. These extracts should fulfil a number of different effects on the skin and thus help with a wide range of complaints. There is no scientific proof to date that horse ointment actually helps with the complaints for which it is used on a massive scale. However, the effect of the individual ingredients has been partially researched and is effective. Whether the use of horse ointment can help with individual complaints can usually be clarified by a treating physician.
Fields of application
On the basis lacking study results so far no sound results are present over the effectiveness of the different available horse ointments of the different offerers. The areas of application for which the ointments are used are thus based on experience and theoretical scientific considerations. In general, the areas of application for the horse ointment are derived from the effects of the plant extracts contained.
Depending on the percentage composition of the ingredients, the ointment has a warming and circulation-promoting effect as well as an analgesic and cooling effect. Thus the ointment can be applied whenever the structures can benefit from one of these effects. These effects are particularly effective for complaints affecting the musculoskeletal system, which is why the ointment is also typically used for muscle and joint complaints.
Joint pain or muscle pain can be relieved by the horse ointment as well as back pain. Horse ointment can also help to reduce the pain of various bruises or sore muscles after great efforts. Some people also use the ointment for bruises.
Especially if there are no fundamental and serious clinical pictures which lead to these complaints, the use of horse ointment is recommended as a therapeutic agent. Whether in individual cases the application of the ointment leads to the desired treatment success should be clarified by a treating physician after a detailed discussion of the symptoms and a physical examination. The ointment can easily be applied to the area to be treated from the outside.
