PEA, a Key Pathway to Discomfort Relief

As I continue to read more and more research, and receive more and more feedback from you all, I am becoming more and more impressed by the power of PEA (Palmitoylethanolamide) to heal.

In a recent newsletter, I discussed research showing how powerful PEA is for helping relieve brain pain (microglial activation) and other severe sensitivities (MCAS). Since then, I've read additional studies that show how remarkable PEA is for any kind of chronic discomfort. PEA has been researched in well over 30 studies, with over 6.000 people with chronic discomfort. As I continue to explore these studies, I am becoming increasingly excited about the importance of this remarkable naturally occurring chemical.

For example, a Netherlands study that was shared with me yesterday showed that PEA decreased discomfort by a dramatic 60 to 70% in cases of nerve compression (for instance, lower back problems). If you view the study, you'll find a short video included in it from the researcher. He discusses his experience with PEA in treating thousands of people with chronic pain. The video at the link above is less than three minutes, and well worth watching.

In this video, the researcher shares his experience with actual patients on optimal dosing and timing. Based on what he describes, I have revised my dosage recommendations. Here’s what he found:

PEA for Chronic Discomfort

Chronic discomfort has several key components. According to the study researchers, this includes:

1. Balancing Inflammation. This can be powerfully addressed by using a mix of a highly absorbed curcumin and Boswellia called Curamin®.
2. Muscle shortening and pain, caused in large part by low energy in the muscles. Muscles are like a spring. It takes more energy for them to stretch (relax), than for them to contract. In a similar way, low energy in muscles can cause chronic muscle shortening and pain. This is well addressed by following the S.H.I.N.E.® Protocol to increase overall energy.
3. Compression. When nerves and other tissues are being pinched, as in low back discomfort. Most often, standard medicine addresses this with surgery. This earlier study of over 600 people showed that compression pain dropped by over 60 to 70% simply by using PEA.
4. Brain pain or microglial activation. When discomfort becomes chronic, the brain starts to amplify pain. The researchers said they are finding this is the rule rather than the exception when pain has persisted (e.g., over six months).

The research showed dramatic drops in pain, where the VAS pain scale dropped from 7.1 to 2.2. That's a pain reduction of 60-70%! For perspective, a 30% drop is typically considered clinically very significant.

But a Higher Dosage Yields Better Results

The initial study only compared a dose of 300 mg a day of PEA to 600 mg, and they found that the 600 mg dose was much more effective than the lower dose. But since then the lead researcher, renowned pain specialist Prof Jan Keppel Hesselink, has explored PEA dosing to fine-tune his initial findings.

The dosing Prof Jan Keppel Hesselink now recommends is:

1. For chronic discomfort, start a trial of PEA using a dosage of 1,200 mg a day .
2. Give it a month.
3. Then increase to 2,400 mg for 2 months. 

Most often, he sees pain relief beginning at three weeks using this higher dosing!

My Revised Dosage Recommendation

Based on Prof Hesselink additional research, I am changing my recommendation to the higher doses that he found works better. After being on the higher dose for a few months to get optimal benefits, try moving to a lower dose, such as 600 mg a day, to see if it maintains the benefit.

Why? In many cases chronic discomfort is like a fire. Once you put the "flames" out for 3-6 months, they often stay out on their own. So, after this time you can try lowering the dose or even stopping all together.

As we get more and more experience with PEA, I will continue to update my recommendations. Please send your experiences with PEA to me at fatiguedoc@gmail.com. Thank you.

Important note: This is a supplement where the brand is critical because of the need for good absorption. The only form I recommend is PEA Healthy Inflammation Response from the Terry Naturally® brand, which has natural Gammasorb to markedly enhance absorption. It also has serratiopeptidase to melt away the fibrin clots that block healing.

PEA Healthy Inflammation Response and Curamin are quite a dynamic duo to help you get discomfort free!