Melatonin. Mitochondria. Mitophagy. Autophagy. Oh my! Back pain links them all in an interesting way. Melatonin – the sleep regulating hormone – manages sleep which is essential to the body’s capability to recover from the day and get ready for the next. Mitophagy stimulates 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 prevent such deterioration in the cells of the disc which could lead to disc degeneration. Autophagy is the normal bodily procedure that controls cell destruction and creation in the body. When there is cellular stress, autophagy is amplified. (1) Pflugerville Wellness Center shares findings that melatonin and light therapy may intercede in this process and promote Pflugerville back pain relief.
MITOCHONDRIA AND DISC DEGENERATION
Pflugerville Wellness Center understands how disc degeneration involves oxidative stress on the cell, mitochondria problems and cell death (aka apoptosis). This is the area researchers suggest melatonin may perform a beneficial role in the slowing of disc degeneration. Melatonin rids oxygen free radicals, normalizes mitochondria function and balance, speeds up mitrophagy and slows apoptosis (cell death). Melatonin may help treat disc degeneration. (2)
MELATONIN AND LIGHT FOR DISC DEGENERATION AND Pflugerville BACK PAIN
In a biological study of melatonin’s effect on intervertebral disc degeneration, melatonin maintained nucleus pulposus cells affected by oxidative stress. Such stress leads to harm of these cells. Melatonin is an essential neuroendocrine hormone with sound antioxidant effect that functions on biological clock regulation. (3) Chronic non-specific low back pain sufferers who added melatonin to their treatment plan found it to positively increase the effect of standard treatments on pain, sleep and depression. The reduced pain intensity when moving and resting indicated that melatonin possibly offers an analgesic effect. (4) Melatonin may be another method to treat intervertebral disc degeneration.
LIGHT THERAPY AND BACK PAIN RELIEF
Since melatonin is activated by light and its lack, light treatment assists patients handle 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 improved with morning bright light treatment of US veterans with chronic low back pain. (5) Such treatment could certainly help Pflugerville back pain sufferers, too! These researchers believe that this light treatment helps the circadian timing of sleep which is mediated by melatonin. (5)
CONTACT Pflugerville Wellness Center
Listen to the on the . A patient struggling with neck pain and arm pain found difficulty with sleep and relief with Cox® Technic.
Schedule a Pflugerville chiropractic appointment for your Pflugerville back pain. Patients in Pflugerville with disc degeneration may discover additional relief with melatonin and light therapy alongside chiropractic treatment. Mitochondria, mitophagy, autophagy, melatonin and back pain are interestingly connected, are they not?