Frankincense: One of Several Anti-Inflammatory Nutrients

Gold. Frankincense. Myrrh. Three gifts talked about throughout the holidays often are overlooked 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 traits. Patients at Moriarty Chiropractic hear us talk about inflammation and its role in Nashua back pain and neck pain very often, so anti-inflammatory supplements with anti-inflammatory nutrients are welcome!

ANTI-INFLAMMATORY NUTRIENTS

A recent narrative review of medical literature regarding the effects of certain nutrients and phytonutrients on the function of the immune system and on inflammation reduction determined that patients with all sorts of health issues, minor to severe, may well get some advantage 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 therapies. The goal of said supplementation is to decrease inflammation which is regulated by the immune system and which is a contributing factor to chronic disease as well as acute illness. The review covered many specifics like how supplements affected inflammatory and immune factors - whose names you may not know very well yet play a role 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 gaining much attention today as the demand to prevent chronic illness and reduce the severity of acute illnesses of all sorts that people globally are dealing with. (1) Moriarty Chiropractic is excited to see these developments in the more natural approaches to health come about!

ANTI-INFLAMMATORY FRANKINCENSE

You will notice that frankincense was one of the nutrients talked about above. A recent study highlighted the benefits of its supplementation.  Frankincense is an oil extract taken from the Boswellia tree. It has been used in anti-inflammatory folk remedies for many years. Using bowellic acids like the 3-O-acetyl-11-keto-βBA (AKBA) are unique anti-inflammatory components of frankincense. In combination with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosahexaenoic acid (EPA), it promoted lipid mediator change of innate immune cells from pro-inflammatory to enhanced anti-inflammatory action of frankincense from Boswellic acid. (2) For Moriarty Chiropractic, frankincense needs to be gifted year-round and not just during 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 Nashua chiropractic appointment.

CONTACT Moriarty Chiropractic

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 illustrates the communication between the immune system and inflammation as well as how spinal manipulation can positively affect the immune system.

Schedule your Nashua chiropractic appointment today 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 decreasing inflammation!