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 receiving
more attention for its anti-inflammatory factors. Patients
at Poulin Chiropractic of Herndon and Ashburn hear us converse
about inflammation and its role in Ashburn
back pain and neck pain very often, so anti-inflammatory
supplements with anti-inflammatory nutrients are well received!
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY NUTRIENTS
A recent narrative review of medical literature regarding
the effects of certain nutrients and phytonutrients on immune system
function and on the
reduction of inflammation concluded that patients with
all sorts 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 in addition to conventional medications
and medical therapies. The goal of such
supplementation is to reduce inflammation which is regulated
by the immune system and which is a contributing factor to
chronic disease as well as acute illness. The review got into specifics like how supplements affected
inflammatory and immune factors - whose names you may not know very well but have a role in your health
- like interferon-g, nuclear factor-Kappa B, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis
factor-a, and CD4+ T cells, and others. Studies like these are getting
lots of attention today as the need to avert
chronic illness and decrease the severity of acute illnesses of all
types that people around the world are
dealing with. (1) Poulin Chiropractic of Herndon and Ashburn is excited
to see these developments in the more natural approaches to health evolve!
ANTI-INFLAMMATORY FRANKINCENSE
You’ll note that frankincense
was one of the nutrients listed above. A recent
study featured the benefits of its supplementation. Frankincense is an oil extract extracted
from the Boswellia tree. It’s been utilized in
anti-inflammatory folk remedies for many years. Using
bowellic acids like the 3-O-acetyl-11-keto-βBA (AKBA) are unique
anti-inflammatory factors of frankincense. In combination
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 Poulin Chiropractic of Herndon and Ashburn,
frankincense needs to be gifted year-round and not just
at the holidays! Nutritional findings like this are just so
interesting, especially when we acknowledge
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 Ashburn chiropractic visit.
CONTACT Poulin Chiropractic of Herndon and Ashburn
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 positively affect the
immune system.
Make your Ashburn chiropractic
appointment soon to visit 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 reducing
inflammation!