New drug limits and repairs stroke-induced brain damage

[barny1]

manchester.ac.uk/discover/n...

[cat3]

I've read about Interleukin on a few occasions Barny, and here's yet another instance of Manchester's continuing efforts in the search for BI treatments.

I took part in one of their surveys last year where they were researching the after-effects of SAH and the anecdotal reports of poor aftercare.

There are a few exciting developments surfacing, and being reminded that these brilliant people are beavering away using their brilliant brains to fix poorly ones is reassuring !

The stem cell route is another promising one. I've nothing but admiration for those working in medical research ; such a noble choice.

[barny1 in reply to cat3]

What's surprising is that this drug has been around for years used to treat Rheumatoid Arthritis, which will hopefully hasten it's approval should the clinical trials prove successful. As the article suggests, larger scale studies are needed. Is it any wonder the culprit of brain damage and enemy of recovery seems to be inflammation and immune system overreaction? I know you have RA and wondered whether you were already being treated with this Interleukin drug?

[cat3 in reply to barny1]

No Barny, I have a corticosteroid (Prednisone) as an anti-inflammatory.

I still have the mystery hanging over me............ that my acute osteoarthritis came on suddenly after my SAH, and my rheumatologist is adamant that he has seen this phenomenon several times throughout his 30 year career but cannot explain the mechanism/s responsible !

I still have a hard time convincing people that it is osteo not rheumatoid (I've had this confirmed repeatedly) so I tend not to talk about it with anyone other than the doctors.

[barny1 in reply to cat3]

I thought it was rheumatoid, I'd seen so many of your posts and felt convinced, never mind!

[lily82]

Turmeric Compound Boosts Regeneration of Brain Stem Cells, and More

articles.mercola.com/sites/...

sify.com/news/compound-deri...

greenmedinfo.com/blog/how-w...

[barny1 in reply to lily82]

I take a teaspoon of turmeric mixed with yoghurt every day. Apparently it's better to mix it with something or cook with it than taking it in tablet form. I feel it does help and is a known natural anti-inflammatory, chronic brain inflammation following brain injury I feel is a major contributor to mood disorders and fatigue as well as the plethora of bodily conditions where inflammation causes problems. I'd first heard about turmeric on this forum (thanks guys!).

Omega-3 rich fish oils are another potent anti-inflammatory to have, Biocare make top-quality supplements, I take Mega EPA.

[lily82 in reply to barny1]

Yeah, I too take turmeric every day. As an anti-inflammatory. It's having a lot of research done on it lately.

[barny1 in reply to lily82]

It certainly is, one study compared curcumin one of the active compounds in turmeric to Sertraline, a common anti-depressant medication in how effective they were at preventing the loss of brain cells in the medial frontal cortex brought about by stress. They found little difference between them, both helped preserve brain cells during times of stress.

ane.pl/pdf/7405.pdf

"Anti-inflammatory" implies much more than just reducing inflammation.

[lily82 in reply to barny1]

Interesting! I began to take Turmeric for my skin and also I have a joint condition that causes inflammation.

They did a study on Turmeric recently on the BBC, did you see it?

Also, Turmeric will have far less side effects, be much cheaper.

[barny1 in reply to lily82]

You mean the one on 'trust me I'm a doctor'? They compared turmeric in tablet form or powder and a placebo. They found positive changes in one gene that plays a part in cancer, depression, anxiety, asthma and eczema. There's an article about it here: bbc.co.uk/programmes/articl...

The powdered form of turmeric was superior (and cheaper) which they thought was because cooking with it helps to absorb it. It's probably best to take it with a meal if you're not going to cook with it.