Interstitial Cystitis Advice

This interesting product has been toted for some time in the “supplement” world, said to have helpful properties for treating a wide array of ails, everything from skin conditions to male “enhancement”. But what is fact and what is fiction? What is L-arginine and how can it affect IC? In this article I will debunk the myths, and delve into those facts which do exist.

Like so many products that are sold over the counter, especially the health food store/vitamin dispensary counter, L-arginine is often misunderstood and misrepresented. Unfortunately there are tons upon tons of supplements/herbal remedies/even vitamin and mineral compounds out there which do squat, or which may even do further harm to your body. That is not to say that all do, of course, many products can, and do have positive, helpful affects on your body. But there is such an array of companies and shops which are using every breath of air they have to push products with unjustified postulations-in other words they have no solid, real medical data to back their claims. Because the simple truth is, often the more ill/sick/unwell/in pain/even desperate a person is the more likely they are to shell out their cold, hard cash for something that sells for “lots of dollars” but does little good. I am not applying this directly to the topic of this article but as more of a general observation. I count myself among those who often pursues naturopathic stores, they can have many beneficiary products, but before I plunk down a single penny I like to do my homework first.

L-arginine has been on the scene for a while now, and essentially it is billed as a nutritional supplement. At its chemical core L-arginine is an amino acid. The protein in food is comprised of amino acids, one of which is “arginine”, further broken down into two categories, L-arginine and D-arginine. Yet is L-arginine that has been investigated as a potential IC remedy, as it plays a role in the formation (creation) of nitric oxide (NO), as well it may aid creating natural analgesic chemicals in our bodies.

Nitric oxide is valuable to the body because it aids in the function of many actions, such as hormone release, killing bacteria and (some) tumour causing cells, enabling smooth muscle relaxation (smooth muscles are found in the bladder), sending pain from within the nerves and certain aspects of the immune system. Not the laziest of amino acids, is it? But how does that affect the bladder?

In 1996 studies began to be published on the role of L-arginine and bladder function. Initially conflicting findings were reported however, as one group (Ehren, Hosseini, Lundberg and Wiklund) showed that two groups of patients that they studied (4 with IC and 4 with bladder infects) had higher than normal levels of NO in their bladders. Yet studies such as those which started in 1996 have repeatedly shown that NO levels are lower than average in the bladders (urine) of those with IC, leading researchers to wonder if higher NO levels would prove beneficial for IC patients.

A study carried out at Yale University (Korting, Smith, Wheeler, Weiss and Foster) studied the decreased level of NO in IC patients (compared to those of their control group) and administered L-arginine (the substrate for NO synthase) orally. They gave their study group 1.5 grams daily for 6 months and it did indeed increase the NO level in these patients. Ten patients that they studied felt a noticeable decrees in their IC symptoms, primarily in terms of lower abdominal/vaginal/urethral pain and frequency. These patients also noted that on average their nighttime voiding decreased from 5.3 times to fewer than 2 per night. But they glory seems to halt there as follow up studies and studies which used higher dosage levels of L-arginine were not so optimistic. A double blind study of 53 patients by the same Yale group in 1999 showed very little, if any change in day time or night time voiding. Yet from the same group those who did have marked improvement in their symptoms, interestingly enough, had a history of repetitive urinary tract infections and larger bladder capacities than many IC patients (higher than 800cc). Suggesting that perhaps L-arginine could play a role in UTI treatment as well as IC (typically levels are lower though in IC patients than those with UTIs).

Once again however, studies that were conducted in Sweden go against these findings (of the Yale group) by demonstrating that higher than average levels of L-arginine are often found in some conditions with inflammation as one of their signs, such as IC. The study also showed that levels of NO were found in IC patients bladders both before and after L-arginine was given as a treatment.

So which is it? Heads or tails? Thus far there is not enough cold, hard facts to say one way or another if the majority of IC patients do or do not have decreased levels of L-arginine in their bladders (and urine). The Yale group recommended 500mgs of L-arginine be taken 3 times a day for a minimum of 6 months. Thereby giving the nitric oxide time to aid in smooth muscle relaxation, immune function factors and help to decrees pain levels. Yet there will need to be larger and or more in depth studies carried out on the effect of L-arginine and IC.

But I won’t leave you with that as my closing line, as oh so many medical studies and papers do. Instead I will put forth my two cents worth and suggest that you give it a try. L-argine is available over the counter (OTC) and on line, however research your source as not all supplements are created equal, in fact the L-arginine that is used in clinical testing is pure and uniformed, essentially medical grade, so you may wish to enlist the help of a doctor or naturopath when sourcing your L-arginine. My research has shown that (what claims to be) pure L-arginine is available from certain brands however, such as that which is manufactured by the “Now” brand, available in powder, or “free” form. Their product does not contain sugar, starch, salt, yeast, wheat, gluten, corn, soy, milk, preservatives, filers and excipients, which would mean that most ICers could tolerate it in terms of biological (”food”) content.

As many ICers find pain to be their most severe symptom, the fact that numerous studies have demonstrated a noticeable decree in IC pain when patients took L-argine may prompt ICers to try L-arginine themselves, even if other symptoms remain at similar levels. Because darn near anything (legal) that helps reduce our IC pain is, as one home etiquette guru used to be ever so fond of saying, “a good thing!”