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28.09.2023

PEA against chronic pain | Metastudy

The natural painkiller palmitoylethanolamide, PEA for short, is on the shelves of every vitamin shop and almost every drugstore. PEA costs relatively little. According to a recent meta-study from Austria, patients with chronic pain may benefit from this supplement.

Study
Austrian anesthesiologists, affiliated with the Medical University of Graz, collected 11 previously published trials in which people with chronic pain complaints had been treated with PEA. In this way, the researchers obtained data from 774 patients.

The Austrians aggregated the results of the trials and reanalyzed them.

The patient populations were diverse. There was a trial in which MS patients had participated, a trial with diabetes patients with neuropathic pain, but also a trial with people with carpal tunnel syndrome. More information about the trials can be found here.

The dosage used varied from 300 to 1200 milligrams of PEA per day, usually divided into 2 intakes per day. The duration of the studies ranged from 10 days to a year.

Results
On a scale of 0-11, PEA supplementation reduced pain scores by 1.68 points.

The figure below shows this. Click on it for a larger version.

The Austrians found few studies that specifically paid attention to the possible side effects of PEA. However, those studies suggested that those side effects were mild and transient.

In addition, the researchers found evidence in their studies that in people with chronic pain, PEA affects both sleep [Inflammopharmacology. 2022 Dec;30(6):2063-77.] and daily physical functioning. [Inflammopharmacology. 2019 Jun;27(3):475-85.]

Source:
Nutrients. 2023 Mar 10;15(6):1350.

More:
Palmitoylethanolamide, a natural painkiller with no side effects 03.11.2016

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