French maritime pine bark extract (Pycnogenol), a herbal medication with a diverse clinical pharmacology.

Obi

Jedi Council Member
FOTCM Member
I would like to bring some attention to the healing effects of the maritime pine bark extract (Pycnogenol) in vascular diseases.

Good introduction to the research is here:


[Quote:]
RESULTS:
Chemical identification studies showed that PYC is primarily composed of procyanidins and phenolic acids. Procyanidins are biopolymers of catechin and epicatechin subunits which are recognized as important constituents in human nutrition. PYC contains a wide variety of procyanidins that range from the monomeric catechin and taxifolin to oligomers with 7 or more flavonoid subunits. The phenolic acids are derivatives of benzoic and cinnamic acids. The ferulic acid and taxifolin components are rapidly absorbed and excreted as glucuronides or sulphates in men, whereas procyanidins are absorbed slowly and metabolized to valerolactones which are excreted as glucuronides. PYC has low acute and chronic toxicity with mild unwanted effects occurring in a small percentage of patients following oral administration. Clinical studies indicate that PYC is effective in the treatment of chronic venous insufficiency and retinal micro-hemorrhages. PYC protects against oxidative stress in several cell systems by doubling the intracellular synthesis of anti-oxidative enzymes and by acting as a potent scavenger of free radicals. Other anti-oxidant effects involve a role in the regeneration and protection of vitamin C and E. Anti-inflammatory activity has been demonstrated in vitro and in vivo in animals. Protection against UV-radiation-induced erythema was found in a clinical study following oral intake of PYC. In asthma patients symptom scores and circulating leukotrienes are reduced and lung function is improved. Immunomodulation has been observed in both animal models as well as in patients with Lupus erythematosus. PYC antagonizes the vasoconstriction caused by epinephrine and norepinephrine by increasing the activity of endothelial nitric oxide synthase. Dilation of the small blood vessels has been observed in patients with cardiovascular disease, whereas in smokers, PYC prevents smoking-induced platelet aggregation and reduces the concentration of thromboxane. The ability to inhibit angiotensin-converting enzyme is associated with a mild antihypertensive effect. PYC relieves premenstrual symptoms, including abdominal pain and this action may be associated with the spasmolytic action of some phenolic acids. An improvement in cognitive function has been observed in controlled animal experiments and these findings support anecdotal reports of improvement in ADHD patients taking PYC supplements.

CONCLUSIONS:
There is much evidence showing that PYC has beneficial effects on physiological functions. Results from ongoing clinical research are required to confirm and extend previous observations.
[END QUOTE]

There is more research, but I will quote it later on.

As it happens, my mother (70 years old) has a short term memory loss, which first was attributed to a possible Alzheimer's disease. But after going through extensive diagnostics at the Medical University, this was ruled out. So, we continued to dig and I finally found among her exam results (from CT) that there is some abnormal flow in her brain. So, I narrowed it down to a possible case of arteriosclerosis in her brain vascular system. She also had a high blood pressure. Based on this idea my parents went to the vascular doctor and she confirmed this to be a very likely cause of her memory problems and sent my mother to MRI exam last month to try to find the clogged artery.

I researched possible and available treatments for a clogged brain artery and basically found out that the way the current medicine treats it is by (1) keeping blood pressure under control with drugs in order not to cause the stroke, (2) using blood diluting drugs (daily aspirine consumption being one suggestion) and (3) stent surgery, which is not always possible and carries high risk of complications (1 out of 3 cases ending in death of the patient due to complications). Not very encouraging and safe treatments.

So, I went digging and found out about the maritime pine bark extract (Pycnogenol) and its application in vascular disease.

The research from 2018 that I found (will quote it later) showed that 150mg/day over 9 months cleared the vascular system almost entirely and the research subjects displayed vascular system health of that of the control group of "healthy" individuals. This was an encouraging treatment and cheap to boot. I also discovered that the vascular disease was attributed to overconsumption of unsaturated vegetable omega-6 oils, which lead to inflamatory stress and they bind to cholesterol and get stuck in the vascular walls causing the buildup of plague. So, anti-inflamatory substances like vitamin C and D were also suggested as part of the treatment in order to lower the level of inflamation in the body.

So, I purchased the pine tree extract (60 pills with 100mg dose, 95% purity) supplement and added vitamin D3+K2 in high dosage (50,000 units per pill) and my mother started to take the pills 6 weeks ago. We also started vitamin C infusions.

Now, after 6 weeks of this treatment, first thing we noticed was the drop in her blood pressure. She would wake up in the morning and we measured her BP before breakfast and it would be 145/90 instead of the usual 180/100. It was not yet stable and she would have high BP in the late afternoon and evening and she needed to use the hypertensive drugs, but nonetheless the dip in the BP was apparent from the very start of the treatment. Before the treatment she would have the BP constantly in the range of 160-180. This is a good sign something is improving and she is taking hypertensive drugs less often and lower dose.

Since we are using 100mg/day as opposed to 150mg/day like in that research, the treatment will last 12 months and after I plan to give her those bark extract pills twice or so per week to prevent the plague to build up. I asked her to remove any vegetable oils from her diet (apart from the cold pressed olive oil) and replace them with lard and butter, which she did.

I will report how this is going, but her short time memory and ability to focus and keep attention on the thing she is doing shows some minor improvement. Like today, I called her to wish her Happy Monthers Day and she remembered I am coming for a visit today in the evening. I told her this during the week and she would always mess up the day and would be always very surprised to hear that I am coming. But today, she said without any reminders from me that we will talk later today when I come home (which she recalled herself). So, there is hope her brain may in fact recover (even if partially) from the short term memory loss at the end of the treatment.

Comments welcome....
 
Also, I'm confused by "proprietary" as a description of the extract, yet a proliferation of brands use the name Pycnogenol.

Also, why opt for 100mg instead of 150mg as in the example and how can you be confident that a lower dose simply requires more time to work, as opposed to being, possibly, ineffective? The review is rather short and doesn't seem to address this, unless I'm misunderstanding.
 
Are French Maritime Bark Extract and Pycnogenol precisely the same thing?

I believe not. Pycnogenol is one of the powerful antioxidants present in the bark extract. There are other ones too, but the pycnogenol is the strongest as far as I understand.
 
Also, I'm confused by "proprietary" as a description of the extract, yet a proliferation of brands use the name Pycnogenol.

As far as I read the bark extract is patented by the French manufacturer and is produced in just one factory around the Bordeaux area. All supplement producers buy this extract from that one factory. It could be why those other producers can use the name.

Also, why opt for 100mg instead of 150mg as in the example and how can you be confident that a lower dose simply requires more time to work, as opposed to being, possibly, ineffective? The review is rather short and doesn't seem to address this, unless I'm misunderstanding.

The reason is that in my country in the Central Europe 100mg dose or lower is available in a reasonable price. Also in other studies I read they used different doses too ranging from 75mg to 150mg or sometimes even more. I do think lower dose should theoretically work the same, but due to lower concentrations in blood it would probably take longer to get the same results, same as taking fewer mgs of iodine takes longer to cure the iodine deficiency.

I cannot yet evaluate how well the bark extract pills are working since my mother and my friend take it only since 2 months, but one thing is clear that the extract pills lower the blood pressure almost instantly (after a week in my mother's case).

I still cannot find the original study that I first found, but I am sure I have it bookmarked somewhere on one of my computers and I will eventually find it and quote it.
 
Thanks! Any update on mother's progress, four months into treatment?

Well, the blood pressure has steadily declined. In September she would have 147/85 resting BP, whereas before she would have 180/90 or more. She stopped taking the hypertensive drugs and she only takes them if her BP is too high. Her BP is very much reacting to her mood. If she has a bad day, she is stressed and BP is higher. If she is relaxed it is around 145/85 or so, so close to upper limit. So, the BP drop is confirmed. In September, we noticed some improvement in her memory. She would usually not remember to take her pills in the morning, but in September she suddenly started to recall in the morning that she has to take her pills. So, some memory improvement is there, but nothing spectacular, just some positive signs. She has now passed 5 months on the bark extract and vitamin D3, so she is not yet through 1/2 of the treatment, but so far it seems to have some influence on her condition. But I am positive that together with the IV vitamin C infusions she is going to improve and at least the vascular health will not worsen, but get better.
 
Ark and I are taking the pycnogenol along with our pomegranate juice. The juice papers say that it clears blockages a bit faster than pycnogenol.

Thanks for the information. I need to look more into the juice and maybe I have my mother drink that too. She is done with 1 year of the bark extract and maybe now time to move to a new therapy. Thanks for the input.
 
I've seen quite a few brands for pycnogenol, but I'm hesitating as I really don't want to waste my money. Which brand do you use? One in particular from Pharma Nord looked nice, but the fact that there's Maltodextrin put me off. Then there's one from Natural Factors and a different one from Viva Naturals that didn't look too bad either.
 
I've seen quite a few brands for pycnogenol, but I'm hesitating as I really don't want to waste my money. Which brand do you use? One in particular from Pharma Nord looked nice, but the fact that there's Maltodextrin put me off. Then there's one from Natural Factors and a different one from Viva Naturals that didn't look too bad either.

I need to check what brand I purchased. I do not recall now. Will write later.
 
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