“Our study examined the mode of action of PEA using an established pattern of pain in healthy volunteers to gain a greater understanding of the mechanisms involved, which is critical for differentiating treatments and developing mechanism-based therapies,” the researchers wrote. University of Graz, which funded the study.
In a study published in a special issue of the journal Nutrition, Frontiers in Diet and Chronic Disease: New Advances in Fibrosis, Inflammation and Pain, PEA is seen as an alternative to commonly used pain medications such as NSAIDs and opioids.
Originally isolated from soybeans, egg yolks and peanut flour, PEA is a cannabis mimic compound that occurs naturally in the body in response to injury and stress.
“PEA has a broad-spectrum analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective action, making it an interesting agent for the treatment of pain,” the researchers say.
“A recent meta-analysis of studies using PEA for neuropathic or chronic pain demonstrated its clinical efficacy. However, the underlying analgesic mechanism has not been studied in humans.”
To study the mechanism of action of PEA, researchers have identified three key mechanisms, including peripheral sensitization, central sensitization, and pain modulation.
In this randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, cross-over study, 14 healthy volunteers received either 400 mg PEA or placebo three times a day for four weeks. The Dutch company Innexus Nutraceuticals supplied the PEA, and the placebo was produced by the Institutional Pharmacy of the Medical University of Graz. googletag.cmd.push(function () { googletag.display(‘text-ad1′); });
After a 28-day trial period, the researchers measured the effects of conditioned pain regulation, pressure pain threshold, and cold pain tolerance based on baseline measurements. For the induction of short-term peripheral and central sensitization, as well as for the study of analgesic and antihyperalgesic effects, the approved pain model “repetitive phase heat compress” was used. After an 8-week washout period, new baseline measurements were taken 28 days before participants were switched to other study interventions.
Participants in the PEA group demonstrated significant reductions in recurring heat pain, twisting speed, and mean distance to allodynia (pain induced by painless stimuli), significantly prolonged cold pain tolerance, and increased pain tolerance in heat pain sensitivity and susceptibility.
“The current study demonstrates that PEA has clinically relevant analgesic properties by acting on peripheral and central mechanisms and modulating pain,” the researchers concluded.
The study suggests that further trials will explore its efficacy in patients with conditioned pain modulation disorder, depression, or centrally sensitized fibromyalgia.
“Our data also support the effectiveness of PEA as a prophylactic pain reliever,” the researchers added. “This approach may be further explored in future research, for example in the treatment and prevention of persistent postoperative pain.”
Nutrients 2022, 14(19), 4084doi: 10.3390/nu14194084 “Effect of palmitoylethanolamide on pain intensity, central and peripheral sensitization, and pain modulation in healthy volunteers – a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled cross-over study” Authors: Kordula Lang-Ilievich et al.
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Post time: Jul-26-2023