Personal Health: Understanding Nitric Oxide's Pivotal Role

Cutting Edge: Like a champion racehorse that comes from behind to overtake the field, Arginine-Derived Nitric Oxide (ADNO) therapy looks set to become the darling of the future across a broad range of healthcare professions. Though little known 10 years ago, today scientific papers addressing the biological significance of nitric oxide in the human body number in excess of 25,000 and more articles continue to flood the medical journals at the rate of 500 plus per month.

Pivotal: All the research is sparked by nitric oxide's proven pivotal role in regulating key functions in cells and tissues including neurotransmission, vasodilation, and immune function and healing. Immediate applications range from infection control to neuropathy relief, and mental repair to muscle growth, while potential applications cover the gamut. In fact a simple Google search on “nitric oxide benefits” brings up 1,200,000 links.

Marvel: This simple molecule, normally produced in the lining of healthy blood vessels, governs blood pressure and directs blood flow. Further, nitric oxide conveys messages between nerve cells and is associated with the processes of feeling and calming pain, learning, memory, sleeping, and probably depression. It is a mediator in inflammation and rheumatism and greatly reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease. The immune system uses nitric oxide in fighting viral, bacterial and parasitic infections, and tumors. Naturally stimulated nitric oxide induces penile erections by dilating blood vessels, and, unlike its synthetic cousin, Viagra performs without negative side effects.

Mainstream: Cardiovascular disease affects an estimated 60 million Americans and is now one of the leading cause of death, making “heart health” a pressing issue for men and women of all ages. “By relaxing and enlarging blood vessels, nitric oxide regulates blood pressure, prevents blood clots that trigger strokes and heart attacks, and protects against the accumulation of vascular plaque.” extract from the best selling book “N.O. More Heart Disease” by Dr. Louis J. Ignarro (1998 Nobel prize winner, medicine and physiology).

The Good and the Beautiful:
Maintaining specific nitric oxide levels in the body is key to good health. When there’s too little nitric oxide, there’s not enough to go around and major systems including circulation, nutrient delivery and immune response slow down dramatically. On the other hand, excessive or forced nitric oxide, (for example; nitric oxide gas therapy) beyond what our body needs causes free radical damage.

Nitric Oxide No-Nos: Full recovery from stress, disease and injuries requires higher levels of nitric oxide. Thus this natural marvel should not be lacking in our bodies—but in most cases is. Here are the most common reasons:

1. Nutritional deficiencies: inadequate raw materials in diet. In particular, diets lacking the amino acid L-Arginine. But Arginine alone is not the answer. (*More on Arginine below).
2. Nutritional blockers: many commonly used herbs and nutrients reduce blood flow by blocking or inhibiting nitric oxide production and others temporarily block nitric oxide production. (This category includes most anti-inflammatory agents, both natural and synthetic, and certain herbs and protein types.)
3. As mentioned, anti-inflammatories and cortico steroids are the biggest nitric oxide inhibitors. Also joint supplements like glucosamine, MSN, chondroitin sulfate, etc., block nitric oxide production and thus retard the body's ability to respond to positive modes of treatment and limit the natural recovery process.
4. Most medications block nitric oxide production to some degree.
5. Cardiovascular damage limits nitric oxide production (remember that nitric oxide is produced in blood vessel walls) But conversely, research shows nitric oxide as a powerful force in addressing heart disease (again see the book “N.O. More Heart Disease” by Dr. Louis J. Ignarro).