NeuroTalk Support Groups - View Single Post

lou_lou · 12-02-2008, 05:58 AM

The Healing Power of Pineapple

The next time you are in a topical location and you have one of the following; sprains, strains, cuts, bruises, insect bits, joint pain, muscle pain, sinusitis, or Arthritis, you may want enjoy a fresh pineapple.
Besides being a healthful fruit, pineapple contains an enzyme called Bromelain that has some remarkable properties.

Pain, Inflammation, Swelling and Healing

The most significant studies regarding it's Bromelain ability to reduce inflammation, pain, swelling and speed healing from injuries, trauma and surgery

Below are some example of it's effectiveness.

In studies Bromelain's anti-inflammatory effect has been found as effective or superior to the following drugs; Naproxen (Aleve), Piroxicam (Feldene), Ketoprofen (Oruvail), Indomethacin (Indocin), Etodolac (Lodine), Diclofenac (Voltaren)(34,36).
In a 1995 German study(14) of people with strains and torn ligaments researchers found that bromelain caused a significant reduction in swelling, tenderness, and pain, both at rest and during movement.
Supplementation of bromelain reduced the average number of days after surgery for complete disappearance of pain from 3.5 to 1.5, and disappearance of inflammation from 6.9 to 2.0 days, as compared with controls receiving no bromelain(24).
A clinical study of boxers with bruises on the face and haematomas of the orbits, lips, ears, chest and arms reported complete disappearance for 80.6% of those taking Bromelain in 4 days vs. only 13.8% of those in the placebo group(20).
These properties make Bromelain helpful for typical injuries that occur during summer sports activities or home improvement projects. Especially when combined with a herbal pain reliever such as Devils Claw Extract and Glucosamine which aids in tissue healing.

Osteoarthritis & Rheumatoid Arthritis

For those of you that suffer from osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis bromelain can be helpful improving pain, inflammation and mediating the autoimmune response(3, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35).

Here are some findings from relevant studies.

Significant clinical improvement in patients with knee osteoarthritis was demonstrated by using bromelain in both the primary outcome (symptoms assessed by the Western Ontario McMaster University Arthritis Index, WOMAC) and in the secondary outcomes (overall psychological wellbeing)(35).

29 subjects whom suffered from arthritis (25 subjects had rheumatoid arthritis, 2 had osteoarthritis, 1 had both and the last had gout) and had residual swelling in a joint after long-term steroid therapy. After starting the bromelain therapy soft tissue swelling subsided mostly, or completely, in 72.4 % of the subjects.(3)

If you take Glucosamine for your arthritis Bromelain can enhance the absorption by up to 90%(30). It also increases the absorption of sulfur (important for joint health) by up to 50%(30).

Cardiovascular Health

Bromelain can prevent or minimize the severity of angina pectoris and transcient ischemic attacks and is useful in the prevention and treatment of thrombosis and thrombophlebitis. It appears that this is the results of it's ability to break down cholesterol plaques, exert a potent fibrinolytic activity and it's anti-inflammatory effect.(37,38,39,40,41,42)

Below are the results of some cardiovascular studies on bromelains' effect.

Administration of bromelain to patients with angina pectoris resulted in the disappearance of symptoms in all patients within 4 to 90 days.(38) Similar results have been observed in patients taking bromelain. After discontinuing bromelain, angina attacks reappear after a variable period of time, often triggered by stressful experiences.(37)
A drastic reduction in the incidence of coronary infarct after

http://bouldernaturallabs.com/article2.html