Bromelain Health Topic

Learn More About Bromelain

1. Bromelain on Health Line

   Bromelain, also known as bromelin, is a protein-digesting enzyme extracted from the flesh and stem of the pineapple plant. Pineapple had a long history of traditional use among the native peoples of Central and South America. They applied pineapple dressings to wounds and skin injuries to reduce inflammation, and eased stomachaches and indigestion by drinking the juice of the fruit. Bromelain is a natural anti-inflammatory enzyme. It is beneficial in reducing the clumping of platelets (small platelike bodies in the blood), the formation of plaques in the arteries, and the formation of blood clots. Bromelain has also been discovered to have anti-tumor action, as well as helping the body absorb medications.

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2. Bromelain on Wikipedia

   Bromelain can refer to one of two protease enzymes extracted from the plant family Bromeliaceae. Bromelain is present in all parts of the pineapple plant. Just eating pineapple will not give you a great deal of extra bromelain, because it is most highly concentrated in the stem. Bromelain works by blocking some proinflammatory metabolites that accelerate and worsen the inflammatory process. In vitro research has shown that bromelain decreases migration of neutrophils to sites of acute inflammation, and in vivo bromelain has generated a 50-85% reduction in neutrophil migration. Studies have shown that bromelain can also be useful in the reduction of platelet clumping and blood clots in the bloodstream, especially in the arteries. Systemic enzyme therapy (consisting of combinations of proteolytic enzymes such as bromelain, trypsin, chemotrypsin and papain) studies have shown significant reduction of many "tumor-induced and therapy-induced" side effects, including nausea, weight loss and fatigue.

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3. Bromelain: Biochemistry, Pharmacology and Medical Use

   Bromelain demonstrates, in vitro and in vivo, anti-edematous, anti-inflammatory, anti-thrombotic and fibrinolytic activities. Bromelain acts as an immunomodulator by raising the impaired immunocytotoxicity of monocytes against tumor cells from patients and by inducing the production of distinct cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-a, interleukin (Il)-1beta, Il-6, and Il-8. Especially promising are reports on animal experiments claiming an anti-metastatic efficacy and inhibition of metastasis-associated platelet aggregation as well as inhibition of growth and invasiveness of tumor cells.

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4. Bromelain Overview from the American Cancer Society

   Some small studies have suggested bromelain may have some effect on immune function or that it may help reduce the ill effects of some types of chemotherapy. Early studies have also looked at the possible use of bromelain for tissues damaged by burns, as a digestive enzyme, and for the treatment of diarrhea.

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5. In Vivo Antitumoral Activity of Stem Pineapple Bromelain

   Stem bromelain is a major cysteine proteinase, isolated from pineapple stem. Its main medicinal use is recognized as digestive, in vaccine formulation, antitumoral and skin debrider for the treatment of burns. In the study, with the exception of MB-F10 melanoma, all other tumor-bearing animals had a significantly increased survival index after bromelain treatment.

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6. Bromelain as a Treatment for Osteoarthritis: a Review of Clinical Studies

   Bromelain has been demonstrated to show anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties and may provide an alternative treatment to NSAIDs for patients with osteoarthritis.

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7. Bromelain: What You Need to Know

   In 1993, a German government commission approved the use of bromelain to treat swelling and inflammation following surgery, especially sinus surgery. Pineapple was used by the indigenous people of the Americas as an anti-inflammatory, diuretic and digestive aid, to ease sore throats, reduce seasickness and induce labor. Bromelain is known as a proteolytic enzyme, which means that it digests proteins (or proteases). Eight different chemicals within bromelain help digest proteins. Bromelain also slows the accumulation of kinins, another by-product of inflammation, and prostaglandins, hormone-like compounds found throughout the body. Prostaglandins, associated with swelling and clotting at sites of injury, can contribute to the formation of diseases when their presence is excessive. In one study, bromelain was found to be effective in slowing the growth of inflammatory prostaglandins. Of all the protein-digesting enzymes, bromelain is most effective at stimulating collagenase, the enzyme that breaks down collagen by dissolving the peptide bonds that hold their proteins together.

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Tags: bromelain, bromelain and protease, bromelain and proteolytic enzyme, bromelain and inflammation, bromelain and anti-inflammatory, bromelain and clotting, bromelain and digestion, bromelain and analgesic, bromelain and cancer, bromelain and collagen, bromelain and enzyme therapy

Bromelain has not been evaluated or approved by the FDA for the any of the following topics indicated in the links above: blood clots, cancer, digestion, inflammation

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