The Research History Of PEA
What is Palmitoylethanolamide (PEA)?
Palmitoylethanolamide (PEA) is a fatty molecule that is produced in large amounts with the body, mostly in response to tissue damage or tissue or muscle injury. PEA is naturally produced by the body’s immune system in response to pain or inflammation. Palmitoylethanolamide, also known as PEA is a naturally-occurring lipid that falls under the fatty acid amides group. Though this compound is produced by the body’s immune system, it also exists in animals and plants and therefore, can be derived from external sources, such as egg yolk, soy lecithin, alfalfa, milk, peanuts and soybean. PEA has power analgesic properties and it, therefore, is able to influence several key physiological functions within the body.
PEA is mostly taken for anti-inflammatory and pain-reducing purposes. So, how does PEA work once inside the body? Once inside the body, PEA binds itself to a target site that switches off the inflammatory function of the cell after the binding process. More importantly, some research shows that the analgesic effect of PEA can be attributed to the compound’s ability to hamper the working of specialized immune cells responsible for transmitting the pain signals. Irrespective of what the exact mechanism is, one thing is certain that PEA provides relief from neuropathic pain as well as inflammation.
However, the human body produces PEA in very a large amount and more often than not, this amount isn’t enough to suppress inflammation and pain and thus, people are often advised to take PEA supplements. Alleviating pain and inflammation is only one of the many benefits of PEA. Let us look at some of the Palmitoylethanolamide (PEA) benefits.
The origins of PEA started in 1939 when clinician and researcher Coburn was looking into how to prevent the incidence of rheumatic fever in poor children living in New York. He stumbled upon egg yolk as a key ingredient that supported the immune system. In 1957 scientists at Merck Sharp and Dome identified PEA as the molecule that provided this support. However, it wasn’t until 1993 that the mechanism of action of PEA was determined through the work of Rita Levi-Montalcini an Italian scientist who back in 1954 had discovered the nerve growth factor (NGF).
Levi-Montalcini’s discovery was that NGF activated specific immune cells called mast cells that further caused inflammation and allergic reactions. Almost forty years later, she discovered how a naturally produced fatty acid amide called PEA interacted with these mast cells, thereby supporting the inflammation response. Furthermore, Levi-Montalcini discovered that PEA was produced locally by cells under threat from noxious and injurious external triggers, like UV-A, various toxins, allergens, infectious agents as well as other inflammatory agents. The local production of PEA thereby supported the body against the threat. PEA was not only produced locally but also acted locally. It seemed like PEA was called into action whenever there was demand, when the body needed support not only against outside triggers but also when the body was under threat from within, for example against aging or whenever the immune system was overactive as in various autoimmune disorders, which occurs when the body stops recognizing friend from foe and starts acting against itself. Mast cells seem to be key components of the inflammatory response.
Levi-Montalcini succinctly pointed out the interaction between PEA and the mast cell:
“…Unregulated mast-cell activation constitutes a considerable risk to the health of the organism, and it is not unreasonable to expect that nature should have devised a means for the host to defend itself against such damage. It has recently been proposed that saturated N-acylethanolamine like palmitoylethanolamide (PEA), which accumulate in tissues following injury and which down modulate mast cell activation, exert a local, and anti-injury function via mast cells. Palmitoylethanolamide is orally active in reducing tissue inflammation and mast cells.”
Once the mechanism of action of PEA was identified, there was a flurry of research on PEA, and new and interesting health benefits were soon discovered. As early as 1980, it was learned that PEA had a tendency to accumulate in the damaged heart muscle due to ischemia or deprivation of oxygen, and this might be of physiological importance because of its properties that aid in a healthy inflammatory response. Researcher Denis Epps suggested that these fatty molecules played a supportive role and that their presence, “may signify a response of myocardial tissue to injury directed at minimizing damage and promoting survival”.
Recent studies have confirmed what Epps and his colleagues postulated. It has been shown in various animal disease models and human tissue analysis that PEA supports various tissues, including the colon, kidney and particularly the nervous tissue along with many other potential benefits.
Currently, there is a number of animal and human studies on the application of PEA in the following conditions:
Endometriosis
Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH)
Burning mouth syndrome
Inflammatory bowel disease and syndrome (IBD/IBS)
Depression
Autism
Transient brain injury
Arthritis
Pain originating from various types
Coronary heart disease
Chronic kidney disease
Atopic dermatitis and eczema
Vulvodynia
Cannabis dependence
Migraine
Infectious diseases
In conclusion, PEA is an endogenously, and locally produced health molecule, the sole function of which is to offer immediate support through down modulating disease processes and acting against noxious stimuli in various systems of the body. The medical potential of this fascinating and undervalued molecule that comes to the body’s rescue when the need arises is worthy of wider attention in the context of ongoing research into the endocannabinoid system.
Where Should I Buy Palmitoylethanolamide (PEA) Powder in Bulk?
If you are planning to foray into the PEA supplements markets, now is the perfect time to do so. Though curiosity, as well as the demand for this product, is increasing, there aren’t many companies catering to this demand. However, if you want to set up a Palmitoylethanolamide supplements company, the first you must do is find a raw materials supplier than you can trust and rely on. This brings us to an important question: where should I buy Palmitoylethanolamide (PEA) powder in bulk?
The answer is Cofttek. Cofttek is a supplement raw materials manufacturer that came into existence in 2008. The company takes immense pride in its highly-skilled R&D team that works round the clock to ensure that the raw material being supplied to clients is of very high quality. More importantly, the company invests heavily on biotechnology and analytical testing. All the products sold by the company are created in their large-scale, high-tech biochemical factory that boasts of mature supplier systems and latest technical facilities. It is this commitment that the company has made to produce high-quality raw materials that has made Cofttek a well-recognized name in the raw material market. Today, it has clients across the world.
The Palmitoylethanolamide powder supplied by the company comes in batches of 25 kgs (Palmitoylethanolamide (PEA) Powder). More importantly, the company has a dedicated sales team. So, all your queries and concerns will always be dealt with at priority. If you are looking to buy Palmitoylethanolamide powder in bulk, this is the only place to shop: cofttek.com.
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