The media blitz surrounding stem cells has had many people searching to find out “How to increase stem cells naturally?” Can you help support your stem cell function with supplements? To answer those questions, let’s start with what stem cells are, and what they do.
What are Stem Cells?
Stem cells are human cells that have extraordinary properties which include:
- develop into many different cell types such as muscle cells, cartilage cells, and bone cells
- divide and produce more of the same stem cell type
- signal other cells to assist in the repair of damaged tissue.
There are many different types of stem cells which include fetal, amniotic, adult and induced pluripotent stem cells. With each of these different types, subtypes exist. Stem cells may come from a person’s own body (autologous) or from a donor (allogeneic). The two major sources of adult stem cells are bone marrow and adipose. Stem cells are not all the same. Stem cells, the type, subtype, and their source are complex. When evaluating the research on supplements it is important that the same cell type, from the same source, is examined in order to make meaningful conclusions.
How to Increase Stem Cells Naturally
Though performed extensively, adding stem cells to your body through an IV is actually the riskiest way to administer stem cells. We’ve been able to help many thousands of people avoid joint and spine surgery and joint replacements and spinal fusions using precise image-guided injections of your own stem cells, but the people searching for “How to increase stem cells naturally?” tend to be looking for supplements that they can take. The number of online stem cell supplements is expansive. Figuring out what to make of all of these supplements can be pretty daunting, as each claims to be the best and greatest, Hence I thought I would review how various supplements and plant extracts impact a specific type of stem cell called mesenchymal stem cell (MSC). Mesenchymal stem cells are incredible cells as they can change into bone, muscle, cartilage and fat cells. The research can be confusing as different types of stem cells are oftentimes used to evaluate the supplements. Familiar supplements include:
Glucosamine/Chondroitin
Derived from shellfish glucosamine and chondroitin are commonly used in the treatment of arthritis. Both supplements can promote MSC’s to become cartilage (1). Other notable effects include:
- Chondroitin has a measurable effect on knee cartilage in actual patients. In a recent study, chondroitin reduced cartilage volume loss on MRI after 6 months of use (2).
- Glucosamine can help the quality of the cartilage when measured on a specialized MRI (3).
- Glucosamine can reduce the breakdown of cartilage (4).
- Glucosamine and chondroitin in combination were better at improving function and reducing cartilage breakdown when compared to prescription NSAID Celebrex (5).
Curcumin/Turmeric
Turmeric is a member of the ginger family whose root is used extensively in cooking. Curcumin is a compound in turmeric and is known for its bright yellow color. It contains chemical compounds known as curcuminoids which are believed to be biologically active. Studies have demonstrated:
- Curcumin can improve bone formation (6).
- Treat arthritis by reducing the enzymes that create inflammation (7)
- Curcumin is as effective as common NSAID anti-inflammatories such as Diclofenac and Ibuprofen (8)
The Good, the Bad and Ugly
There is information on how supplements impact stem cell function. Unfortunately, there is significant variability among supplements. Some promote cell expansion into bone whereas others promote expansion into muscle. Remember stem cells have the unique ability to develop into different types of cells which include muscle, cartilage, and bone. For example, Licorice root increased stem cell growth toward bone formation (9).
All the studies examine a specific supplement. Unfortunately, most stem cell support products include a number of supplements. What happens when all the ingredients are combined is unknown. The interactions between the ingredients may actually cause harm to stem cells. Hence to get a real stem cell supplement you need to do the lab research yourself.
One Year in Lab Creating Stem Cell Supplement
At the Centeno-Schultz Clinic, our goal was to produce a stem cell supplement with the following properties.
Anti-inflammatory
Inflammation takes a serious toll on the body and in a joint causes breakdown of cartilage which leads to arthritis.
Chondrogenic
Chondrogenic means cartilage producing. In our supplement, we wanted to provide an ideal environment for cartilage formation as many of our patients had arthritis.
Proliferative
Proliferation means rapid cell growth. We wanted something to turbocharge your stem cells to aid in your recovery.
Protective
We wanted a security service for your joints so that when toxic and harmful chemicals appeared they would be promptly dealt with and escorted out.
Clarification
The Regenexx stem cell support formula is the end product of our one year deep dive in the laboratory. The supplement has anti-inflammatory, proliferative, chondrogenic and protective properties and as such supports stem cell function. It optimizes the environment for stem cell function. It does not, however, increase stem cells.
To better understand our stem cell supplement and how it will benefit you please click on the video below.
In Conclusion
Knowing how to increase stem cells in the body naturally is important to patients and clinicians alike. Stem cells are unique human cells with many properties which include the ability to develop into muscle, cartilage and bone cells. There are different types of stem cells that can be from different sources. Studies vary significantly with the type of stem cell used and specific action that was studied. When multiple supplements are mixed together the results are unknown. This led the Centeno-Schultz Clinic to spend a year in the lab evaluating the best stem cell support formula. It’s ingredients reduce inflammation, stimulate cartilage formation, stimulate cell growth and are protective against toxic agents.
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1.Wang T, Yang F. A comparative study of chondroitin sulfate and heparan sulfate for directing three-dimensional chondrogenesis of mesenchymal stem cells. Stem Cell Res Ther. 2017;8(1):284. Published 2017 Dec 19. doi:10.1186/s13287-017-0728-6
2.Wildi LM, Raynauld JP, Martel-Pelletier J, et al. Chondroitin sulphate reduces both cartilage volume loss and bone marrow lesions in knee osteoarthritis patients starting as early as 6 months after initiation of therapy: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study using MRI. Ann Rheum Dis. 2011;70(6):982–989. doi:10.1136/ard.2010.140848
3.Martí-Bonmatí L, Sanz-Requena R, Rodrigo JL, Alberich-Bayarri A, Carot JM. Glucosamine sulfate effect on the degenerated patellar cartilage: preliminary findings by pharmacokinetic magnetic resonance modeling. Eur Radiol. 2009 Jun;19(6):1512-8. doi: 10.1007/s00330-008-1286-1.
4.Petersen SG, Saxne T, Heinegard D, Hansen M, Holm L, Koskinen S, Stordal C, Christensen H, Aagaard P, Kjaer M. Glucosamine but not ibuprofen alters cartilage turnover in osteoarthritis patients in response to physical training. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2010 Jan;18(1):34-40. doi: 10.1016/j.joca.2009.07.004.
5.Zeng C, Wei J, Li H, et al. Effectiveness and safety of Glucosamine, chondroitin, the two in combination, or celecoxib in the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee. Sci Rep. 2015;5:16827. Published 2015 Nov 18. doi:10.1038/srep16827
6.Gu Q, Cai Y, Huang C, Shi Q, Yang H. Curcumin increases rat mesenchymal stem cell osteoblast differentiation but inhibits adipocyte differentiation. Pharmacogn Mag. 2012;8:202–208. doi: 10.4103/0973-1296.99285.
7. Kuptniratsaikul V, Dajpratham P, Taechaarpornkul W, et al. Efficacy and safety of Curcuma domestica extracts compared with ibuprofen in patients with knee osteoarthritis: a multicenter study. Clin Interv Aging. 2014;9:451–458. Published 2014 Mar 20. doi:10.2147/CIA.S58535
8.Zeng C, Wei J, Li H, et al. Effectiveness and safety of Glucosamine, chondroitin, the two in combination, or celecoxib in the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee. Sci Rep. 2015;5:16827. Published 2015 Nov 18. doi:10.1038/srep16827
9.Azizsoltani A., Piri K., Behzad S., et al. Ethyl acetate extract of licorice root (Glycyrrhiza glabra) enhances proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells. Iranian Journal of Pharmaceutical Research: IJPR. 2018;17(3):1057–1067. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30127828