If you have painful piles, you may well feel you have exhausted your treatment options and, like many thousands of other sufferers, you may be frustrated and disappointed. If you have tried endless expensive rounds of over the counter creams, you may be considering surgery, but did you know that even surgery does not guarantee a cure?

The very nature of piles means that conventional treatments, such as surgery and topical creams only treat the symptoms of piles. Unless you get right to the root cause, then you have no chance of eliminating the condition and everything else is, quite simply, a quick fix. Home piles treatment, on the other hand, can give you some fast symptomatic relief whilst beginning to treat the root cause.

Although there are various factors which can contribute to the formation of painful piles, much of it revolves around an unhealthy diet and lifestyle. Other factors, such as straining whilst lifting and pregnancy can also contribute to the causes, but looking at your diet is a great starting point for home piles treatment.

Straining whilst trying to empty the bowels can stretch and weaken the walls of the veins around the anus, causing them to protrude. It is very important to understand that if you are constipated and have difficulty going to the toilet, trying to pass a stool for longer than a couple of minutes is certainly not recommended. Treating the problem from the "inside out" is the way forward, by ensuring that firstly, you are drinking a minimum of 2 liters of water each and secondly, your diet is focused towards helping to you have softer stools.

You must ensure that you are eating a minimum of 20 grams, but preferably 30 grams of fiber each day. Much of this should come from fresh fruits and vegetables, but dried fruits such as figs and prunes are also great for those with piles. In addition, home piles treatment includes eating beans, seeds and bran.

To get relief from painful piles, you can try the following home piles treatment strategies:

* Use an ice pack on the anal area (wrapped in a clean flannel)
* Keep the area scrupulously clean, ensuring that you allow the area to air dry after washing
* Always wipe very gently after visiting the toilet and finish off with a careful wipe with a wet wipe
* Bathing can really help with pain relief-it will not harm you to use a sitz, or normal bath up to 4 times a day
* Carefully apply zinc cream or petroleum jelly to the piles for some relief and protection