Frankincense: One of Several Anti-Inflammatory Nutrients
Gold. Frankincense. Myrrh. Three gifts mentioned around the holidays often are neglected the rest of the year…except gold. We do hear a lot about gold! Well, frankincense is among several nutrients and phytonutrients getting more attention for its anti-inflammatory factors. Patients at Chiropractic Spine Sports And Rehabilitation are quite aware that we chatter on about inflammation and its role in Tonawanda back pain and neck pain very often, so anti-inflammatory supplements with anti-inflammatory nutrients are well received!
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY NUTRIENTS
A new narrative review of medical literature about the effects of certain nutrients and phytonutrients on the function of the immune system and on inflammation reduction determined that patients with all types of health issues, minor to severe, may well benefit from daily supplementation of acetyl-L-carnitine, Vitamin C, Aloe vera polysaccharides, Vitamin B12, beta-glucans, bilberry, black seed oil, coenzyme Q10, curcumin (turmeric), garlic, resveratrol, ginger, hydrolyzed rice bran, lipoic acid, mistletoe, N-acetyl cysteine (NAC), omega-3 fatty acids, Vitamin E (d-alpha- and gamma-tocopherol), selenium, shiitake mushroom and its derivatives, isoflavones, Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol), zinc, and frankincense. Such supplementation may be added to conventional medications and medical interventions. The goal of such supplementation is to reduce inflammation which is regulated by the immune system and which is a contributor to chronic disease as well as acute illness. The review covered many specifics like how supplements impacted inflammatory and immune factors - whose names you may not know very well but impact in your health - like interferon-g, nuclear factor-Kappa B, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-a, and CD4+ T cells, among others. Studies like these are garnering much attention today as the demand to avert chronic illness and reduce the severity of acute illnesses of all sorts that people globally are dealing with. (1) Chiropractic Spine Sports And Rehabilitation is eager to see these developments in the more natural approaches to health come about!
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY FRANKINCENSE
You’ll note that frankincense was one of the nutrients talked about above. A recent study highlighted the benefits of its supplementation. Frankincense is an oil extract extracted from the Boswellia tree. It’s been used in anti-inflammatory folk remedies for a long time. Using bowellic acids like the 3-O-acetyl-11-keto-βBA (AKBA) are unique anti-inflammatory components of frankincense. Combined with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosahexaenoic acid (EPA), it stimulated lipid mediator change of innate immune cells from pro-inflammatory to enhanced anti-inflammatory action of frankincense from Boswellic acid. (2) For Chiropractic Spine Sports And Rehabilitation, frankincense needs to be gifted year-round and not just at the holidays! Nutritional findings like this are just so interesting, particularly when we realize that inflammation has a role in spine-related pain that we treat every day. Let’s talk about our anti-inflammatory nutritional supplement at your next Tonawanda chiropractic visit.
CONTACT Chiropractic Spine Sports And Rehabilitation
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. James Cox, developer of The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management, on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he describes the communication between the immune system and inflammation as well as how spinal manipulation can benefit the immune system.
Make your Tonawanda chiropractic appointment soon to see us! Though we’re not sure when myrrh will get its due, we’ll be happy to see that frankincense is getting its due for the role it may have in managing inflammation!
