The list of plant extracts and foods that inhibit IL-1 beta is overwhelming, even more so when you consider that it is composed only of the items that I have been able to think of and look up thus far, in my snippets of time…how many more are there?!
The following, therefore, is probably only a partial list of foods (and/or their compounds) that inhibit IL-1 beta. It is intended mainly for those who don’t take supplements for one reason or another. I should note that I frequently found more than just one study per food/food compound:
Garlic: http://tinyurl.com/aae5n6
Possibly capsaicin: http://tinyurl.com/csjhqu It is the active ingredient in hot chili peppers and has anti-myeloma activity (see my page on capsaicin)
Ginger extract: http://tinyurl.com/cqv9f7 (also anti-myeloma, see my ginger page)
Ursolic acid: http://tinyurl.com/bn86pr Found mainly in: rosemary, apples, bilberries, cranberries, pears, peppermint, lavender, oregano, holy basil, thyme and prunes (see my page on the anti-myeloma effects of ursolic acid, which inhibits STAT3).
Olive oil: http://tinyurl.com/begrvy
Blueberries: http://tinyurl.com/bm3zsz
White wine (compounds): http://tinyurl.com/dby9jf
Xanthohumol: http://tinyurl.com/dc8kvg Found in beer.
Caffeic acid: http://tinyurl.com/b64y2s Found in many fruits, vegetables and herbs. Also in, drum roll!, coffee!
Grapes and grape extract: http://tinyurl.com/bzk7rh
Anything from the Brassicaceae family (= broccoli, cabbage…): http://tinyurl.com/aw2f8h
And finally, we should eat truckloads of artichokes, which contain silymarin, an active compound in milk thistle and IL-1 beta inhibitor: http://tinyurl.com/bpyzqj
More to come…
Silymarin is really good for keeping the liver working and helping it detox which is beneficial in many ways! So, now, if you drink coffee and beer and eat lots of berries and veggies……………..?!
Hi Margaret,
I’ve been reading about different inhibitors of il-1b, both natural and supplemental types and so far, it seems that there is a multitude of substances out there that can do just that and I’m sure many of us are already using many of them.
In reading different articles though, what is harder to determine is how strong of an effect each substance has toward that end. It seems that instead of specific numbers or percentage of inhibition, it is just stated that a specific substance inhibited, antagonized or down regulated il-1b.
In the abstract that I posted yesterday about ashwagandha, they used the term “significantly down regulated the gene and protein expression of il-1b”, but at what point does down regulation become significant ? If a substance is “potently inhibited”, is that more or less than “significantly down regulated”? This seems to be common terminology in many of these articles and something that I have always wondered about over the years. I’m sure in some of these complete scientific studies they will give actual percentage changes, but most of us never get to see that information.
It seems like it would be very useful to know to what degree each substance was able to actually inhibit il-1b in order to determine which substances might prove most useful for that purpose. I notice with antioxidants they often use a comparison of some sort to a known standard such as vitamin c, nac, trolox, orac or vitamin e to name a few. I guess I’m just thinking out loud.
Art
I’m sure happy that beer made the list!
And thanks for the list. Sunshine and I will see if this calls for changes in our diet. Maybe we could eat more ginger …
Don
Have used the candied ginger for arthritis and just eat it when I’m craving sugar- makes your breath gingery and is easy on the digestion