Inflammation. Disc Degeneration. There is a connection.
Inflammation acts as the body’s response system to harmful
stimuli (injury, pathogens, metabolic stress – a disc herniation compressing a nerve!) as it attempts to restore itself to normal
before the harm was achieved. Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office is never
shocked at how the body takes care of itself!
Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office sees its Groton chiropractic care as the body’s partner in healing especially
when spine pain is an issue. Chiropractic care uses
many tools like spinal manipulation, exercise, and nutrition to help
the body. Melatonin is one nutritional tool that is proving value
by interrupting 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 the cellular level
via autophagy, the natural process via which the body’s
cells clean out damaged (ie, by inflammation) or unneeded parts. In
a new 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 final conclusion was that melatonin inhibits
intervertebral disc degeneration by stimulating autophagy. (3)
Wow. Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office is inspired by this research to see just
how well melatonin can work for Groton back pain linked
to disc degeneration.
MELATONIN AND ITS HEALING WAYS FOR THE DISC
Disc degeneration is a very common condition
seen at Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office that positive news of
melatonin’s benefits are quite rousing. A recent
study stated that melatonin could modulate
the extracellular matrix of the disc remodeling process initiated
by IL-1 β. Further, melatonin reduced the
inflammatory cell collection and decreased the release of connected
inflammatory markers IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α. With this new discovery
that melatonin disrupted the IL-1B feedback loop, researchers
proposed that melatonin may provide
the healing process of intervertebral discs after damage has already been done. (1) Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office continues
following the new research regarding the role inflammation has
in Groton disc degeneration and melatonin’s role in combatting
it.
INFLAMMATION AND MELATONIN
The significance of melatonin in helping
to slow or stop painful conditions due to inflammation is rising.
The description of melatonin as a multitasking molecule affecting
mood, immunity, and energy among other mechanisms is quite suitable.
It’s also anti-oxidant, anti-aging, and anti-inflammatory, specifically
by blocking 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 impacts
the body’s aging, anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptosis (cell death), and autophagy
(cell-cleanout) activities. (1) Melatonin’s specific effect on
inflammation and disc degeneration is most interesting
to Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office and our Groton back pain patients.
CONTACT Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office
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 Groton chiropractic appointment with
Shoreline Medical Services/ Hutter Chiropractic Office soon. We can talk about the role
inflammation plays in your back pain experience and how melatonin may address the related disc
degeneration.