West Des Moines Chiropractic Relief of Back Pain due to Disc Degeneration May Be Boosted by Melatonin and Light Therapy
Melatonin. Mitochondria. Mitophagy. Autophagy. Oh my! Back pain connects them all in an interesting way. Melatonin – a hormone secreted by the brain at night to regulate circadian rhythm – manages sleep which is vital to the body’s ability to recover from the day and get ready for the next. Mitophagy promotes healthy turnover of mitochondria (the energy producers in cells). Mitophagy prevents the build-up of dysfunctional mitochondria in cells that may precede cell degeneration. In the case of back pain, this would avoid such disc cell deterioration which may precede disc degeneration. Autophagy is the normal bodily procedure that manages cell destruction and creation in the body. When there is cellular stress, autophagy is amplified. (1) Executive Chiropractic of Iowa presents findings that melatonin and light therapy may intercede in this process and help with West Des Moines back pain relief.
MITOCHONDRIA AND DISC DEGENERATION
Executive Chiropractic of Iowa knows how disc degeneration includes oxidative stress on the cell, mitochondria problems and cell death (aka apoptosis). This is where researchers suggest melatonin may play a positive role in the slowing of disc degeneration. Melatonin rids oxygen free radicals, normalizes mitochondria function and balance, hastens mitrophagy and slows apoptosis (cell death). Melatonin may help treat disc degeneration. (2)
MELATONIN AND LIGHT FOR DISC DEGENERATION AND West Des Moines BACK PAIN
In a biological study of melatonin’s effect on intervertebral disc degeneration, melatonin maintained nucleus pulposus cells influenced by oxidative stress. Such stress leads to harm of these cells. Melatonin is an essential neuroendocrine hormone with good antioxidant effect that functions on biological clock regulation. (3) Chronic non-specific low back pain sufferers who included melatonin in their treatment plan experienced a positive increase on the effect of standard treatments on pain, sleep and depression. The decreased pain intensity when moving and resting indicated that melatonin possibly offers pain relieving effect. (4) Melatonin may be another way to treat intervertebral disc degeneration.
LIGHT THERAPY AND BACK PAIN RELIEF
In so much as melatonin is produced by light and its lack, light treatment helps patients cope with chronic low back pain, its pain intensity, behavior, and threshold. It also assists with post-traumatic stress disorders symptomatology and quality of sleep. All these were bettered with morning bright light treatment of US veterans with chronic low back pain. (5) Such treatment could surely help West Des Moines back pain sufferers, too! These researchers believe that this light treatment regulates the circadian timing of sleep which is mediated by melatonin. (5)
CONTACT Executive Chiropractic of Iowa
Listen to the PODCAST with Dr. Chris DeVeau on the Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson. A patient struggling with neck pain and arm pain found difficulty with sleep and relief with Cox® Technic.
Schedule a West Des Moines chiropractic appointment for your West Des Moines back pain. Patients in West Des Moines with disc degeneration may discover extra relief with melatonin and light therapy alongside chiropractic treatment. Mitochondria, mitophagy, autophagy, melatonin and back pain are interestingly connected, are they not?
