St Peters Back Pain Related to Inflammation Reduced with Melatonin
Inflammation. Disc Degeneration. There is a relationship. Inflammation is the body’s response to harmful stimuli (injury, pathogens, metabolic stress – a disc herniation compressing a nerve!) as it tries to restore itself to normal before the harm was done. Old Mill Chiropractic is never shocked at how the body takes care of itself! Old Mill Chiropractic sees its St Peters chiropractic care as the body’s partner in healing particularly when spine pain is an issue. Chiropractic care utilizes many tools like spinal manipulation, exercise, and nutrition to help the body. Melatonin is one nutritional tool that is proving value in its ability to interrupt the inflammatory process related disc herniation that brings about pain relief: back, neck, spine-related.
DISC DEGENERATION AND INFLAMMATION AND 'AUTOPHAGY'
Inflammatory markers interleukin-1β (IL-1β), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) are related to intervertebral disc degeneration. (1) IL-1 β actually promotes itself, its own expression, by upregulating NLRP3 inflammasome activation. (2) The body regulates itself down to its cellular level via autophagy, the natural process via which the body’s cells clean out damaged (ie, by inflammation) or unneeded parts. In a recent study, melatonin enhanced autophagy and reduced the degradation of the disc’s extracellular matrix (technically marked by a decline in marker LC3B, autophagasomes and autolysosomes and inhibition of the NF-kB signaling pathway). The end conclusion was that melatonin inhibits intervertebral disc degeneration by stimulating autophagy. (3) Wow. Old Mill Chiropractic is inspired by this research to see just how well melatonin can perform for St Peters back pain related to disc degeneration.
MELATONIN AND ITS HEALING WAYS FOR THE DISC
Disc degeneration is such a common malady seen at Old Mill Chiropractic that positive news of melatonin’s benefits are quite rousing. A new study explained how melatonin could modulate the extracellular matrix of the disc remodeling process started by IL-1 β. Further, melatonin reduced the inflammatory cell collection and reduced the release of associated inflammatory markers IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α. With this new discovery that melatonin interrupted the IL-1B feedback loop, researchers proposed that melatonin may contribute to the healing process of intervertebral discs after damage was already present. (1) Old Mill Chiropractic continues following the new research regarding the role inflammation plays in St Peters disc degeneration and melatonin’s role in reducing it.
INFLAMMATION AND MELATONIN
The importance of melatonin in helping to slow or stop painful conditions due to inflammation is increasing. The description of melatonin as a multitasking molecule affecting mood, immunity, and energy among other mechanisms is quite fitting. It’s also anti-oxidant, anti-aging, and anti-inflammatory, specifically by hindering the activation of inflammasomes (4) Melatonin’s formal chemical name is as about as long as its list of tasks: N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine. The pineal gland secretes melatonin naturally. Melatonin influences the body’s aging, anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptosis (cell death), and autophagy (cell-cleanout) processes. (1) Melatonin’s specific effect on inflammation and disc degeneration is most interesting to Old Mill Chiropractic and our St Peters back pain patients.
CONTACT Old Mill Chiropractic
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Hrefna Sylvia based in Iceland where back pain isn’t much different from any other country on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as she illustrates how The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management addresses disc degeneration for relief of chronic low back pain in her patient.
Schedule your St Peters chiropractic appointment with Old Mill Chiropractic today. We can discuss the role inflammation plays in your back pain experience and how melatonin may address the related disc degeneration.
