Comprehensive Library Of Resveratrol News

While it will be said that resveratrol is an unproven (but not disproven) pain reliever, it may be a safer and more effective reliever from the agony of chronic pain than existing pain remedies, both prescription and non-prescription.

Recently research discovered why some people are less sensitive to pain than others. A master pain switch has been discovered. Pain is controlled by a cellular sodium channel which permit pain signals to pass along nerve cell membranes. People born without a functioning sodium channel called Nav1.7 do not feel pain. Without this sodium channel, low levels of internal opioids (natural narcotics) are naturally produced. Sodium channel-blocking drugs are used as local anesthetics but are unfortunately unsuitable for long-term pain relief as they induce complete numbness. [Nature Communications 2015]

A decade ago researchers reported that the red wine molecule resveratrol (rez-vair-ah-trol) suppresses currents that follow along sodium channels to induce analgesia (pain relief). [Brain Research 2005] Resveratrol addresses this new major pain control pathway.

Resveratrol doesn’t stop there. Resveratrol’s broad biological action inhibits COX-2 (cyclooxygenase 2), TNF (tumor necrosis factor), and CRP (C-reactive protein), all three chemical markers of inflammation that provoke chronic pain syndromes and its demonstrated ability to reduce sensitivity to pain (something biologists call nociception) should cause biologists to proclaim resveratrol as the king of pain medications. [Pain; Annals New York Academy Science; PLoS One]

Pain has to be the most prevalent symptomatic complaint when dental, joint, bone, muscle, headache, earaches, sore throats and nerve pain syndromes are considered in total. In fact, almost 80 percent of adults say that they take some kind of pain medication at least once a week. [Consumer Reports 2014]

Readers may wonder why they should consider resveratrol for pain relief over existing over-the-counter pain remedies. The stark fact is that there really are no absolutely safe pain pills, even the non-prescription pain relievers. [Harvard Health; Berkeley Wellness]

With the exception of aspirin, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (like ibuprofen) can raise the risk of heart attacks or strokes. [WebMD]

Acetaminophen (Tylenol) can and does induce liver failure.

Full-strength aspirin tablets (325 mg) can induce mortal bleeding gastric ulcers and hemorrhagic strokes and baby aspirin (81 mg) is impotent in preventing heart attacks caused by blood clots. [American Journal of Medicine]

Even when narcotic pain relievers are successfully employed a paradoxical response may occur where a patient actually becomes more sensitive to pain (called opioid-induced hyperalgesia or drug tolerance). [Pain Physician]

Opioid (narcotic) pain relievers (codeine, fentanyl, heroin, morphine, etc.), when used repeatedly, may induce a phenomenon known as tolerance where a higher dose of the drug is required to produce the same response achieved initially, something resveratrol reverses. [National Institutes of Health; Neuroscience Letters]

With all this said, resveratrol steps in as a master inhibitor of pain as evidenced in numerous studies dating back over a decade.

• In particular, resveratrol reduces sensitivity to pain. [Regional Anesthesia Pain Medicine]
• Resveratrol relieves acute pain in models of post-surgical pain, even traumatic pain. [Molecular Pain; Spine; Journal Natural Products]
• The fact that resveratrol has been shown to be effective in animal laboratory tests speaks even louder than human studies since there is no placebo effect with animals. [Archives Italian Biology]
• Diabetic neuropathy (experienced as pain, tingling, numbness) particularly in arms, hands, feet and legs (peripheral nerves) is relieved by resveratrol. [Life Science]
• Because resveratrol is an estrogen-like molecule, it has even been found to relieve endometrial pain in conjunction with oral contraceptives at a low dose (30 mg). [International Journal Womens Health]

Resveratrol compared to aspirin

While aspirin has been shown to reduce the risk for colon-rectal cancer, long-term use leads to gastric ulcers. Resveratrol has been proposed as a companion with aspirin to reduce this unwanted side effect. [Journal Medicinal Chemistry]

Resveratrol even protects against Reye’s syndrome, a serious side effect of aspirin. [Canadian Journal Physiology Pharmacology]

Natural synergistic co-factors

The co-use of vitamin B1 (thiamin) with resveratrol improves pain relief. [Proceedings Western Pharmacological Association]

The combination of resveratrol + quercetin exhibit superior ability to inhibit blood clots. [Thrombosis Research; Clinical Chim Acta]

Anti-blood clotting properties

Few will give up their aspirin tablets because of their widely advertised ability to thwart heart attacks caused by blood clots.

However, up to 20% of vascular events (strokes, heart attacks) are attributable to a failure of aspirin to suppress blood clots (platelet aggregation). Resveratrol has been shown to inhibit blood clotting in blood platelets taken from high-risk cardiac patients. [Journal Cardiovascular Pharmacology]

Very low dose resveratrol inhibits blood clots indirectly, not by inhibiting platelet function directly but by enhancement of hormones called prostaglandins that calm blood platelets from clumping. [Planta Medica] Resveratrol exhibits other profound mechanisms to block obstructive clots from forming. [Platelets]

Resveratrol counters abnormal blood clotting that may occur with the use of pro-oxidant mega-dose vitamin C. [Thrombosis Research]

Resveratrol has been demonstrated to reduce scarring (fibrosis) when heart attacks were intentionally induced in laboratory mice, turning an experimental mortal heart attack in the animal lab into a non-mortal event. [ResveratrolNews.com] This is considered the best form of cardioprotection. — ©2015 Bill Sardi, ResveratrolNews.com