Naltrexone for inflammation and senscent cells
A friend of mine has thyroid issues and found a fantastic functional physician. This is an MD who specializes in root causes, not symptoms. Interestingly her functional put her on Naltrexone, which (quick internet search) is a drug used for opioid addiction. But she is doing it for inflammation and as a senolytic* (she's not recovering from opioids!), and it's working fantastically, at least to reduce her inflammation and symptoms.
Another very quick search isn't bringing up anything obvious, BrianMDelaney do you know about this one?
* She described it as "it clears out dead cells" - I assume she's talking about senescent cells. This is second/third hand as I'm not directly talking to her physician.
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Low dose naltrexone (LDN) – I assume she's on LDN, not the normal dose for addiction recovery – is theoretically helpful because it reduces microglia inflammation. I'm on 4 mg/bedtime. Google [ LDN ] and you'll get a lot of info, but, alas, few real studies.
I actually first heard about it as an aid for people with sleep problems. (Note: it can cause insomnia during a one-or-so-week adjustment period.) Hasn't helped my sleep, though.
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It's an immune modulator - increases T regulatory cells, balances TH1/TH2, and activates macrophages/microglial cells. It's great because it either works, or does nothing. Virtually no harm in trying it.
