Benefit for Plainville Degenerated Discs from Pumpkin Leaves

This time of year, pumpkins are everywhere! We enjoy them for décor, but they offer so much more! News of late focuses on the benefits of their leaves to slow disc degeneration and even possibly support regeneration. That’s news to your Plainville chiropractor’s ear…and without doubt to our Plainville back pain and neck pain patients’ ears, too!

THE DISC – Healthy and Degenerated

Many back pain treatment approaches focus on easing the pain and returning function without consideringa way to reduce the speed of the degenerative process and/or encourage regeneration. The intervertebral disc is made up of an inner core (nucleus pulposus) made of proteoglycans and a layered outer rim (annulus fibrosus) rich in collagen. Combined, these two work as a shock absorber and stabilizer for the spine. Treatment choices for the degenerated disc come from being aware of the processes that precede degeneration in order to help ease discogenic pain more effectively. (1) Your chiropractor studies these mechanisms a lot!

PUMPKIN LEAVES AND CAROTENOIDS

It's recognized that pumpkin products and by-products (like leaves!) have major carotenoids - β-carotene, α-carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin – with β-carotene being the foremost one in most pumpkin types. The total content of carotenoids depends on several factors, one is the extraction process. Functional foods are advanced from carotenoids which are said to add significantly to the many health benefits of the foods. (2) Nutrition can plan a role in disc health. Let’s put our Plainville pumpkins and their by-products to work for us!

PUMPKIN LEAVES AND COLLAGEN AND PROTEINS AND DISC CELLS

A unique way to put pumpkins to work for us is well explained in a recent study regarding how the leaves of pumpkins may help. The acetone extract from Violina pumpkin (curcurbita moshata) leaves brought about a significant rise in extracellular matrix components like aggrecan and collagen type II as well as other proteins and stress response regulators in the degenerated intervertebral disc cells taken from degenerated disc tissues of spinal surgery patients. Markers noting the presence and activity of stem cells were significantly higher as well. This news motivated the researchers to state that the hypothesis about how adequate stimuli can support resident cells to repopulate the degenerated discs was thereby reinforced. The report overall concluded that data point to the discovery of molecules that may effectively reduce disc degeneration using a part of the pumpkin that most of us get rid of as waste – the leaves! (3) Layden Chiropractic bets you’ll look at the pumpkin leaves differently this season!

CONTACT Layden Chiropractic

Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. James Cox on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he illustrates how nutrition may decelerate and possibly avert degeneration and stimulate regeneration via ingredients like chondroitin sulfate based on years of research performed already and how nutrition in combination with The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management reduce and manage spine pain. We’ll keep watching the pumpkin leaves’ research as it evolves!

Make your Plainville chiropractic appointment soon to see us this pumpkin season!