Baton Rouge 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 links them all in an interesting way. Melatonin – the sleep regulating hormone – promotes sleep which is essential to the body’s ability 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 deterioration. 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 a normal practice that controls cell destruction and creation in the body. When there is cellular stress, autophagy is augmented. (1) Medical Spine and Sports Injury and Rehab Centers presents findings that melatonin and light therapy may intercede in this process and promote Baton Rouge back pain relief.
MITOCHONDRIA AND DISC DEGENERATION
Medical Spine and Sports Injury and Rehab Centers knows how disc degeneration includes cellular oxidative stress, mitochondria problems and cell death (aka apoptosis). This is the area researchers imply melatonin may play a beneficial role in the reduction of disc degeneration. Melatonin rids oxygen free radicals, adjusts mitochondria function and balance, speeds up mitrophagy and slows apoptosis (cell death). Melatonin may assist in the treatment of disc degeneration. (2)
MELATONIN AND LIGHT FOR DISC DEGENERATION AND Baton Rouge BACK PAIN
In a biological study of melatonin’s effect on intervertebral disc degeneration, melatonin preserved nucleus pulposus cells affected by oxidative stress. Such stress leads to impairment of these cells. Melatonin is an vital 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 reduced pain intensity when moving and resting signified 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 produced by light and its lack, light treatment helps 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 bettered with morning bright light treatment of US veterans with chronic low back pain. (5) Such treatment could certainly help Baton Rouge back pain sufferers, too! These researchers suspect that this light treatment regulates the circadian timing of sleep which is mediated by melatonin. (5)
CONTACT Medical Spine and Sports Injury and Rehab Centers
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 Baton Rouge chiropractic appointment for your Baton Rouge back pain. Patients in Baton Rouge with disc degeneration may find additional relief with melatonin and light therapy together with chiropractic treatment. Mitochondria, mitophagy, autophagy, melatonin and back pain are interestingly linked, are they not?
