Benefit for Manchester Degenerated Discs from Pumpkin Leaves

This time of year, pumpkins are all over the place! We like them for décor, but they offer so much more! Recent news highlights the benefits of their leaves to reduce the speed of disc degeneration and even possibly support regeneration. That is news to your Manchester chiropractor’s ear…and without doubt to our Manchester 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. Together, these two work as a shock absorber and stabilizer for the spine. Treatment choices for the degenerated disc come from understanding the processes that precede degeneration so as to help ease discogenic pain more effectively. (1) Your chiropractor studies these mechanisms all the time!

PUMPKIN LEAVES AND CAROTENOIDS

It's well-known that pumpkin products and by-products (like leaves!) contain major carotenoids - β-carotene, α-carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin – with β-carotene being the foremost one in most pumpkin varieties. The total content of carotenoids rests on many factors, one is the extraction procedure. Functional foods are developed from carotenoids which are said to add significantly to the multiple health benefits of the foods. (2) Nutrition can plan a role in disc health. Let’s put our Manchester 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 described in a recent study about 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 in addition to other proteins and stress response regulators in the degenerated intervertebral disc cells removed from degenerated disc tissues of spinal surgery patients. Markers indicating the presence and activity of stem cells were significantly increased as well. This news motivated the researchers to state that the hypothesis about how enough stimuli can support resident cells to repopulate the degenerated discs was thereby sustained. The report overall determined that data indicate that the discovery of molecules that may effectively reduce disc degeneration using a part of the pumpkin that most of us throw away as waste – the leaves! (3) Manchester Chiropractic & Sports Injuries thinks you’ll look at the pumpkin leaves differently this season!

CONTACT Manchester Chiropractic & Sports Injuries

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 stop degeneration and stimulate regeneration via ingredients like chondroitin sulfate based on years of research done already and how nutrition combined with The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management decrease and manage spine pain. We’ll keep watching the pumpkin leaves’ research as it evolves!

Make your Manchester chiropractic appointment now to see us this pumpkin season!