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The Power of Peptides in Reducing Brain Inflammation

By |2024-03-19T12:47:31-04:00March 19th, 2024|Categories: Brain Health|Tags: , , , , , |0 Comments

Marilyn, an otherwise healthy 45-year-old woman, first visited our functional medicine and integrative healthcare clinic complaining of unrelenting fatigue, brain fog, loss of concentration, difficulty recalling words, and restless sleep.

She had seen other doctors, and they were unable to offer a diagnosis or any effective treatments. Her brain MRI scans came back as normal, and the neurologists with whom she consulted found no notable dementia or neurological disease that could explain her symptoms.

Her nervous system and brain were seemingly intact. All good from the perspective of conventional medicine, but Marilyn knew better; clearly, her brain was not functioning optimally. Marilyn’s symptoms were classic signs of brain inflammation. We had seen these same symptoms in hundreds of patients in the past. We knew the causes, and we had effective treatments to help her.

Peptides for brain inflammation

In this post, we look at common causes of brain inflammation and the PROVOKE Health approach to treatment, which may include the use of medically prescribed therapeutic peptides such as:

  • Semax
  • Selank
  • Thymosin Beta 4

Exploring the Causes of Brain Inflammation

In Marilyn’s case  many of the   common symptoms of brain inflammation were there: exhaustion, clouded thinking and brain fog, poor sleep, anxiety, and a steep decline in quality of life. But before I (Dr. Lewis) go deeper into the specifics of Marilyn’s case, let’s take a look at the bigger picture.

Other Health Conditions Linked to Brain Inflammation

Numerous health conditions can negatively impact brain health and function, including the following: Continue reading…

Enhancing the Body’s Self-Healing Properties with BPC-157

Imagine a car that maintains and repairs itself. All you need to do is fuel it up, change the oil and other fluids occasionally, and it remains in tip-top condition for decades. As parts wear down, they are rejuvenated within hours. If there’s an accident, it might take a couple of weeks for the dents to pop out, leaving your car looking like new.

That’s pretty much how a healthy human body reacts to proper care, and it’s amazing. Cut your finger, and within days, the tissue repairs itself. Properly set a broken bone, and within six to 12 weeks, it’s almost like new. Plagued by stomach ulcers? Identify and address the cause, and those ulcers heal in a matter of two to eight weeks. 

Given the right supports, the body may even be able to heal itself of certain cancers. And thanks to neuroplasticity, the brain can regrow neurons and build new neural networks.

reducing inflammation with peptides

Unfortunately, there are a number of factors that can impair and undermine the body’s self-healing mechanisms. These include age, nutritional deficiencies, toxins, stress, poor sleep, and insufficient physical activity. Some medications can also impede healing, including non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), immunosuppressants, anticoagulants, and corticosteroids. 

In contrast, chemical compounds called peptides show promise of enhancing the body’s natural ability to heal itself. They can trigger responses at the cellular level that kick the body’s healing mechanisms into high gear. I’m especially excited about one peptide in particular — Body Protection Compound 157 or BPC-157 for short — which is the focus of this post.

Dr. Lewis Recommends: For a detailed overview of peptides, please read The Healing and Rejuvenating Power of Therapeutic Peptides here on my blog. If you are already familiar with that post, feel free to skip the next section and jump directly down to What Is Body Protection Compound 157?

What Are Peptides?

Peptides are naturally occurring chemical compounds — short chains of fewer than 50 amino acids — that serve as Continue reading…

The Healing and Rejuvenating Power of Therapeutic Peptides

By |2023-06-06T19:14:21-04:00May 12th, 2023|Categories: Peptides|Tags: , , , , |0 Comments

As a functional medicine-trained doctor, I thrive on discovering therapies that harness the body’s ability to heal and rejuvenate itself. I’m talking about therapies that build upon the fundamentals associated with proper nutrition, exercise, sleep, stress management, and medication.

And that’s why I continue to be impressed with the benefits of therapeutic peptides — those chemical molecules that bind to receptors on the surface of cells and trigger positive responses at the cellular level. I experienced these benefits firsthand recently when I started to treat an old rotator cuff (shoulder) injury of mine with a combination of two therapeutic peptides — Body Protecting Compound-157 (BPC-157) and Thymosin Beta 4. Look for a separate blog post about this later this month. For now, I’m going to share what you need to know about the use of therapeutic peptides in a medically-supervised plan of care.

What Are Therapeutic Peptides?

Peptides are short strings of amino acids — much shorter than protein molecules and easier for the body to absorb and break down. Therapeutic peptides are those that are bioactive and have a beneficial effect on the body. Some common peptides are available in over-the-counter supplements, such as collagen peptides for skin health, and creatine peptides, which may help build strength and muscle mass. Some therapeutic peptides are natural or derived from natural sources; others are synthetic — manufactured in labs.

Pharmaceutical companies have developed a wide variety of natural and modified peptides into medications that act as hormones, growth factors, neurotransmitters, ion channel ligands, and anti-infective agents. One example is insulin, which is a peptide hormone produced by the pancreas.

Semaglutide (also known as Ozempic, Wegovy, and Rybelsus), which is commonly used to control blood sugar and support weight loss, is another therapeutic peptide that you may have heard of. More than 60 peptide medications have been approved for use in the United States and other major markets.

Using Therapeutic Peptides to Treat Specific Medical Conditions

Peptides are now being used in plans of care to treat many illnesses and diseases, including: Continue reading…