Pine bark is an amazing supplement, hands down. There are a number of proven benefits of pine bark according to clinical research and traditional use.
Pine bark heals wounds, lungs and veins. It also reduces allergies. And pine bark also helps relieve tinnitus and vertigo according to still other research. Menopausal symptoms are also aided, the extract also shortens the duration of the common cold, and more. Let's take a closer look.
What is pine bark?
Pine resin has been used for thousands of years in many cultures of the world. Native Americans utilized pine resin for treating inflammation and rheumatism, and for treating skin wounds and burns. Spruce pine resin was used by American colonists to remedy coughs and colds. Tuberculosis and influenza were also treated with pine resin for centuries. In Chinese medicine, pine resin has been sued for treating abscesses.
One particular type of pine bark extract – this from the French maritime pine – has undergone significant study over the past decade. These studies – using either Pycnogenol or Flavangenol (registered trademark for Pinus pinaster bark extract) – have illustrated pine bark extracts’ tremendous health effects.
Pycnogenol® is a leading brand of pine bark extract derived from the maritime pine tree (Pinus maritime), indigenous to the southwest coast of France. The patented plant extract has been the subject of more than 300 published research studies showing its efficacy in a number of conditions, most specifically those related to inflammation and low immune function.
These health effects found in clinical studies of these pine bark extracts have included improvements in epithelial-vascular function (blood vessel health) – including chronic venous insufficiency, deep vein thrombosis, venous ulcers and hemorrhoids), improvement of perimenopausal symptoms, asthma, photoaging and other inflammation-related conditions.
These studies and others also illustrate the effects of another species, Pinus roxburghii and other pine bark resins discovered by traditional cultures and now by modern science were not imaginary. The application of a remedy for centuries within the randomization and double-blind elements of traditional societies and indigenous cultures offers us significant evidence.
Pycnogenol® in particular, has been shown in a number of studies to have significant antioxidant properties. Antioxidants prevent oxidative radicals that can damage brain cells and help increase brain function – helping to delay or prevent the onset of cognitive impairment later in life.
Note that other varieties of pine can also have these benefits, depending on the quality of the extract.
Pine bark compounds
Pycnogenol's antioxidant potential is extremely high, and most attribute its success against cardiovascular disease and asthma as related to its antioxidant potential.
It has been found to contain phytonutrients such as procyanidins, bioflavonoids and numerous organic acids.
However, pine bark extract also contains other compounds. Lab testing has found it to contain procyanidins, polyphenolic monomers, phenolic acids, catechin, epicatechin, cinnamic acids, bioflavonoids, numerous organic acids and other compounds.
The extract from the maritime pine tree also produces a variety of biochemicals in the body. These include the ability to increase levels of nitric oxide in the body. Nitric oxide increases blood vessel dilation and stimulates better circulation. This effect on nitric oxide in the bloodstream has other effects as well – such as strengthening immunity.
Pine bark Boosts Memory
Biomedical researchers from Italy’s Chieti – Pescara University have found that pine bark extract in the form of a supplement called Pycnogenol® increases cognitive function, attention span and mental performance.
The research investigated 108 healthy university students between 18 and 27 years old. They were divided into two groups. One group took Pycnogenol® and the other group took a placebo.
The researchers tested the subjects' attention span, memory, and executive brain functions over an eight-week period. They also analyzed the students’ university testing scores.
The pine bark extract group scored significantly higher on all the tests and evaluations. Of the university tests, the pine bark group failed only 6% of the tests, while the control group failed almost 11% of the tests – about 75% more failures than the pine bark group. The Pycnogenol® group also had better test scores in general, averaging scores of 26 versus 23.8 for the control group.
The researchers concluded that eight weeks of Pycnogenol® supplementation “improved sustained attention, memory, executive functions and mood ratings in the students. The improvement was statistically significant.”
This conclusion is confirmed by another study on the pine bark extract, Pycnogenol®, done by Australian researchers in 2008. In this study, 101 elderly individuals took either 150 mg of Pycnogenol® for three months or a placebo. The researchers found that those who took the Pycnogenol® had significantly better working memory than the placebo group.
Other research confirms pine bark’s cognitive abilities
In a 2018 study, 87 people with mild cognitive impairment were tested. They were split into two groups. One group received conventional treatment, while the other group was given 150 milligrams of Pycnogenol® pine bark extract per day.
After eight weeks of treatment, the researchers retested the patients. They found that the average mini-mental state exam (MMSE) score improved dramatically among the pine bark group. The MMSE improved from 21.6 to an average of 25.6, increasing an average of 18 percent.
Meanwhile, the standard treatment group’s MMSE scores only increased by 2.5 percent.
The researchers noted that decreased oxidative stress – a hallmark of pine bark extract – was one of the mechanisms at work.
In addition to these studies, there have been a number of laboratory studies that have confirmed these types of effects from Pycnogenol®.
Parkinson’s Disease
Parkinson’s disease is extremely complex and there are a variety of suspected causes. Our research has discussed studies showing that some antipsychotic drugs have been linked to Parkinson’s.
This is often caused drug-induced Parkinson’s, but the symptoms are practically the same with the exception that drug-induced Parkinson’s can affect both sides of the body. But drug-induced cases can also affect one side more than another.
Heavy metal exposure has also been linked to Parkinson’s by some studies. Other research has shown that manganism – often misdiagnosed as Parkinson’s – is caused by fuel additives and similar chemicals.
Pesticides and other chemicals sprayed on our foods have also been linked to Parkinson’s. These have included paraquat and others.
In a 2020 study from Italy’s Chieti-Pescara University, researchers tested 43 Parkinson’s disease patients. They had been diagnosed at least a year earlier. They were split into two groups. One group was given the standard treatment of carbidopa or levodopa. The other group also received this standard treatment, but also received 150 milligrams per day of the pine bark extract Pycnogenol®.
The researchers tested the patients for Parkinson’s symptoms, including tremor, bradychinesia and cognitive functions before and after the study period. They utilized the visual scale line with scores between 0 and 4.
After only four weeks, the researchers tested the patients again. The pine bark group had significantly fewer symptoms, including the motor function, posture stability and cognitive functions. Cognitive functions were particularly higher according to the researchers.
The study authors wrote:
“After 4 weeks, these target symptoms were attenuated with the supplement more than with the standard management only.”
Pine bark also reduced ankle swelling
The researchers also found that the Pycnogenol® also significantly reduced ankle swelling (also called edema) – another common PD symptom. All of the patients had ankle edema when the study started.
Among those patients who took the pine bark, ankle edema disappeared in 17 of the 21 patients.
That means it improved in 81 percent of the patients. Among the other (standard treatment only) group, ankle edema persisted in 19 of 22 patients.
Pycnogenol® is an extract of the Marine pine tree (Pinus Pinaster).
The Common Cold
Researchers from Italy’s Chieti-Pescara University in Pescara and the University of Milan conducted a two-phase study. This tested the Pygnogenol® brand of pine bark extract against an over the counter (OTC) cold remedy, along with the pine bark extract and vitamin C and then the pine bark extract with vitamin C and zinc.
During the first phase of the study, the researchers gave 40 patients the pine bark extract and 33 patients the OTC cold remedy at the first sign of a cold. The pine bark extract shortened cold duration by nearly a day and reduced sick days by about a third among the patients compared to the OTC group.
The second phase of the study then tested 196 patients who, again at the first sign of a cold took the pine bark extract (Pycnogenol ®) with vitamin C, the pine bark extract with zinc gluconate or the pine bark extract with vitamin C and zinc gluconate.
While all three combinations of pine bark extract shortened cold duration, the combination of all three shortened the cold’s duration the most – cutting the length of time of the cold by an average of 3 days compared to the (control) OTC remedy group.
The combination of zinc and vitamin C with the Pycnogenol® also resulted in a reduction of average sick days by over 66%. In addition, the combination led to an 88% reduction in complications relating to the cold. Complications include the cold becoming a lung infection.
The dose of the combination consisted of 100 milligrams of the Pycnogenol®, 200 milligrams of Vitamin C and 30 milligrams of Gluconate Zinc. The complex was taken daily for at least five days from the beginning of the cold.
All of the pine bark extract groups also shortened the cold’s post-symptom cleanse significantly compared with the control group. And all of the extract groups had reduced levels of swelling in the sinus mucus membranes – a common cold symptom.
But the Pycnogenol with the vitamin C resulted in the quickest relief of the runny nose after 3-4 days.
The Seven Cold Pillars Reduced
In fact, all seven “pillars” of the cold virus were decreased in the pine bark extract groups. The seven “pillars” of a cold include:
1) sore throat
2) sneezing
3) runny nose
4) blocked nose
5) fatigue
6) cough
7) fever
More than 200 viruses can lead to the common cold – the most common being the rhinovirus. However there are nearly 100 different human rhinoviruses. Rhinovirus transmission typically occurs through droplets of respiration – transmitted through the air during sneezing and coughing as well as through handling a contaminated object such as a doorknob, button or otherwise. For this reason, frequent hand washing when in public places is generally advised.
The common cold will typically strike the average adult two to five times a year.
The lead researcher in the study, Dr. Gianni Belcaro, discussed the ramifications of the new research:
“The results of the study demonstrate the effects of a supplement plan using Pycnogenol® alone or in association with other supplements to reduce the symptoms and severity of the common cold.”
ADHD
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) affects nearly 10 percent of kids in the U.S., at about 6.1 million kids, between the age of 2 and 17 years old.
We have discussed the link between ADHD and pesticides, and ADHD and the Western Diet during pregnancy before. And we have shown research confirming that pine bark extract reduces Parkinson’s symptoms and boosts memory and cognition.
Now we find that pine bark extract can significantly reduce ADHD symptoms.
Researchers from the Department of Psychiatry at the Taiwan Adventist Hospital in Taipei tested 20 kids with an average age of 10 years old.
This study was a crossover trial, which means that it was like testing double the number of patients. In this case, the patients were divided into two groups. For four weeks, one group was given the pine bark and the other group was given a placebo.
Then there was a “washout” period of two weeks to give the kids’ bodies the ability to clear out the effects of the supplementation.
After that washout period, the groups were switched: The group given the placebo in the first four weeks was given the pine park. And the group given the pine bark was given the placebo.
The treated kids were given either 25 milligrams or 50 milligrams per day of the pine bark extract in each test.
Before the study, and after each of the four weeks, the children were tested for inattention and hyperactivity levels, using the SNAP-IV scale. SNAP-IV measures the frequency of ADHD symptoms with an 18-point questionnaire. The patients were also tested with the Conners Continuous Performance Test III (CPT III). This is a computer assessment test that measures attention.
After each of the four-week testing periods, the researchers found that the kids taking the pine bark extract had significantly higher improvements in their scores on the SNAP-IV test and the CPT III test.
Antioxidant correlation
The researchers also tested the antioxidant status of the kids by testing their levels of glutathione and oxidized glutathione ratios.
They also measured the children’s levels of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances – also called TBARS. TBARS measures reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels. These are also commonly called free radicals.
TBARS indicates the levels and strength of free radical stress in the body. How does this relate to ADHD? Well, as we’ve discussed with other research, free radical stress can significantly reduce cognition and increase anxiety.
Other research has showed that ADHD is linked to environmental toxins. Environmental toxins act in our body as free radicals, as they damage blood vessels and brain tissues.
This is how other herbs can boost our cognitive abilities and reduce anxiety. When free radicals are neutralized, our brain tissues can operate at higher levels, with reduced tissue damage. Brain tissue damage is a hallmark of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.
The researchers found that levels of glutathione and the TBARS testing indicated that the pine bark extract increased the levels of antioxidants among the children.
They didn’t find a specific correlation between the two, but the researchers did conclude:
“Pine bark extract supplementation may have potential effects of ameliorating inattention and impulsivity, and elevating the antioxidative status in children with ADHD.”
Perimenopause conditions improved by Pycnogenol
Menopausal and perimenopausal issues can be elusive and difficult for doctors to treat without hormone replacement therapy. However, research shows that some natural remedies can successfully reduce menopausal conditions. One of these, in particular, is pine bark extract.
A popular pine bark extract branded as Pycnogenol® – a patented extract of the bark of the French maritime pine tree (Pinus pinaster) – was the subject of a 2017 study by medical school researchers at Italy’s D’Annunzio University. This study tested 70 peri-menopausal women for two months.
Perimenopause (or perimenopause) is a period where a woman transitions to menopause, a period that can last between 8 and 10 years. Perimenopause typically begins during the mid- to late-40s.
The researchers gave half the women 100 milligrams per day of the Pycnogenol pine bark extract for the 8 weeks. The other women were given a placebo.
The researchers used the Menopausal Symptoms Questionnaire-34 as a testing tool. They found that practically all of the menopausal symptoms of the women taking the Pycnogenol improved significantly after the 8 weeks.
The women taking the Pycnogenol also saw their elevated cholesterol and triglyceride levels reduced on average, and fasting glucose levels were “normalized” according to the researchers.
Menopausal symptoms reduced by more than half
In a 2013 study, researchers from Japan’s Keiju Medical Center also found that the same pine bark nutraceutical, Pycnogenol, can significantly reduce symptoms of menopause and perimenopause.
The researchers tested 170 women who were in perimenopause in this double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Twice a day for three months the women were given either 30 milligrams of Pycnogenol or a placebo. The women were also tested for hormones and had a thorough blood analysis before and after the treatment period.
The women were also given extensive questionnaires, using the standardized Women’s Health Questionnaire, along with the well-known Kupperman index test.
After only four weeks of treatment, women taking the Pycnogenol showed significant improvement in their physical menopausal symptoms. These included problems with sleep and circulation issues – which can relate to a number of symptoms including restless legs syndrome (RLS) and hot flashes.
After the three-month trial, the Pycnogenol treatment resulted in a 56% reduction in perimenopausal symptoms using the Kupperman index.
The Kupperman index rates different symptoms, each weighted to importance. They are: hot flashes, paresthesia, insomnia, nervousness, melancholia, vertigo, weakness, arthralgia or myalgia, headache, palpitations, and formication. These are rated by severity by the number of times reported per day. The highest index score is a 51.
This study confirms a study two years ago done by researchers from Italy’s Pescara University. Here 38 perimenopausal women were given 100 milligrams of Pycnogenol per day over a two-month period. They were compared with 32 control subjects.
The researchers found that while the control group showed no improvement, the Pycnogenol group showed improvement in most of the major symptoms of menopause, in addition to decreases in “fatigue, sleeping disorders, concentration and memory problems, dizziness, depression and irritability” according to the research.
The researchers concluded:
“Pycnogenol® significantly contributed to reduce signs and symptoms associated with menopausal transitions in women investigated in this study. Furthermore, Pycnogenol® improved the quality of life of most women and these benefits may be at least in part attributed to decreased oxidative stress levels.”
Menopause symptoms, memory and depression also helped
A 2011 study from Italy’s Pescara University tested 70 peri-menopausal women over an eight-week period. They gave 38 women 100 milligrams of Pycnogenol, and the other women acted as a control group.
After the eight weeks, the pine bark extract group saw their levels of hot flushes, night sweats, mood swings and other symptoms significantly decrease. They also had improvements in memory, dizziness and depression after their testing period.
Meniere’s disease
Research from Italy’s University of Chieti-Pescara has determined that a patented pine bark extract significantly treats tinnitus and vertigo symptoms involved in Meniere’s disease.
Meniere’s disease is a type of vertigo caused by a condition of the inner ear, discovered by the French doctor, Prosper Meniere in the mid-nineteenth century.
Dr. Meniere found the vertigo disorder, which produces a low-pitched tinnitus of varying intensity depending upon the person and the degree of the condition; can eventually result in a complete loss of hearing.
Symptoms include periodic headaches, dizziness, nausea and vomiting along with vertigo attacks that can last hours to weeks.
The researchers tested 120 patients with Meniere’s disease, with varying intensity of vertigo and tinnitus symptoms.
Along with others, the researchers listed the following main symptoms among the patients:
- Loss of hearing
- Tinnitus
- Spontaneous vertigo
- Positional vertigo
- Ear pressure
- Unsteady gait
The researchers split the 107 patients into two groups (one group of 55 and another of 52) and for six months, and both groups were given what is called “best available management” which means conventional treatment.
In addition, one group was given 150 milligrams per day of Pycnogenol – a patented pine bark extract from the French Maritime tree.
The other group was given only the “best available management.”
The researchers monitored all of the patients for symptoms of Meniere’s disease, including tinnitus and vertigo. They found that after three months of treatment, the pine bark extract group showed significantly better improvement than the control group. A full 45 percent of the pine bark extract group had a complete recovery after three months compared to 23 percent of the placebo group.
After six months, a full 87 percent of the pine bark extract group experienced recovery – became asymptomatic. Meanwhile, 34 percent of the control group (conventional treatment) recovered after six months.
The researchers also specifically measured tinnitus symptoms and found that tinnitus was significantly reduced in the pine bark group, significantly more than the control group.
Furthermore, the researchers found that what is called cochlear flow was significantly improved in the “best management” group.
This is also called cochlear blood flow. When the pressure in the fluid within the inner ear is significantly different than normal, this can reduce cochlear blood flow.
Low cochlear blood flow is reduced in a number of disorders – including positional vertigo and Meniere’s disease, but also including different types of loss of hearing such as sensorineural hearing loss.
In fact, decreased cochlear blood flow is known to result in hearing loss.
One of the reasons for this is there is a delicate balance of nutrients among the inner ear fluids. There are in fact several channels or sections of inner ear fluids, including the perilymph that lies within the vestibuli and tympani regions and the endolymph within the cochlear duct.
The endolymph fluid is high in potassium ions while the perilymph is high in sodium and low in potassium ions. These ionic fluids help transport the flow of information by the use of ion potential changes.
Blood flow access to these regions helps keep them properly nourished and allows waste product removal – along with helping to neutralize free radicals.
Increases Artery Blood Flow
Pycnogenol has been shown in other research to significantly increase blood flow, reduce free radicals within the blood and decrease artery oxidation. This was found in study of 23 coronary artery disease patients. The patients were given 200 milligrams per day of Pycnogenol for 8 weeks and crossed over with a placebo.
The research found the pine bark extract significantly increased flow-mediated dilatation within the arteries and significantly reduced oxidation within the blood.
These two factors are significantly related to the effect of the pine bark extract upon hearing.
Reduces Allergies
Researchers from Italy’s University of Pescara have determined in a clinical trial of 76 allergic asthma patients that a maritime pine bark extract significantly reduces asthma symptoms.
The researchers gave Pycnogenol® – a patented extract from pine bark – to 76 patients allergic to dust mites. The patients suffered from asthmatic symptoms. They ranged in age from 25 to 45 years old. The researchers confirmed their allergies with provocation, and then split the patients into two treatment groups.
The first group was given 100 milligrams per day (50 mg twice a day) of the pine bark extract for six months. The patients also continued their corticosteroid inhalers (fluticasone propionate). The second group dosed with the same corticosteroid medications, but without the pine bark supplementation.
Among the group taking the pine bark extract, 55% was able to reduce inhaler doses over the treatment period and none of the patients had to increase their inhaler dosage. Among the second, no-supplemented group, 6% was able to reduce inhaler dose while nearly 19% had to increase their inhaler doses.
The researchers measured cough, wheezing and other asthmatic symptoms during the treatment period. The inhaler-only group’s symptoms did not improve while the pine bark-group’s symptoms improved considerably. The researchers also found that the Pycnogenol group’s average IgE titers (measures allergic response in the bloodstream) decreased by 15% while the inhaler-only group’s IgE titers increased by 13%.
The pine bark extract group also was able to reduce the use of salbutamol rescue inhalers to once every five days on average, while the non-supplemented group averaged once every two days of rescue inhaler use.
The researchers, led by professor of medicine Dr. Gianni Belcaro, concluded that the pine bark extract allowed improved asthma control among the patients. “This study gives promising news to asthma patients seeking natural ways to complement their medication in order to better control their asthma symptoms, and confirms that Pycnogenol® offers a natural solution that is not only effective but also safe,” Dr. Belcaro said.
Other studies have shown that Pycnogenol® can lower allergy symptoms. The research has also shown that Pycnogenol can reduce leukotrienes – mediators involved in inflammation responses – by reducing 5-lipoxygenase expression. Reduction of wheezing and reduced response to chemical irritants has also been shown in the pine bark extract research. Part of Pycnogenol’s benefit comes from its extraordinary antioxidant potency.
Pycnogenol® contains significant levels of procyanidolic oligomers – PCOs. These are polyphenol complexes of proanthocyanidins. Pycnogenol® can contain between 65% and 75% PCOs by content. PCOs have been shown to render an array of cardiovascular benefits and can speed healing of connective tissues because they support repair activities of collagen and elastin.
Fights Infections
Himalayan Pinus roxburghii pine bark also has many healing benefits.
New research from the Jamia Hamdard’s Faculty of Pharmacy in New Delhi has confirmed that the ancient Ayurvedic and Nepalese remedy referred to as Bhadradaru and Salla come not only with thousands of years of clinical use, but now is backed up by science.
The herbal remedy is derived from the resin from the bark of the of Pinus roxburghii tree – a tree that is indigenous to the Himalayan region, Pakistan and Afghanistan as well as the hills of Southern India. The tree has many relatives around the world as well.
Now the ability of resin from Pinus roxburghii and other pine resins to fight infection and inflammatory conditions is being confirmed in research.
Pine resins derivatives have been shown to inhibit Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, E. faecalis and Klebsiella pneumoniae. The resin has also shown antifungal activity against Mucor racemosus, Syncephalastrum racemosum and Rhizopus stolonifer. These are yeasts that can wreak havoc with infections.
Methanol extracts of P. roxburghii were found to have wound healing effects as well.
Kills Cancer Cells
Recent animal research found P. roxburghii improved cognition, and stimulated glutathione within the frontal cortex and hippocampus.
P. roxburghii has a number of constituents. A study from the University of Alabama isolated 81 compounds and identified 78 of them. These included sesquiterpenes such as caryophyllene and humulene, and terpinenol, terpineol and carene. This and other research has isolated pinene, limonene, phellandrene, dipentene, carinene, azulene, borneol, longifolene, cadinene along with multiple sesquiterpenes within pine bark and pine needle extracts.
This study from the University of Alabama also found that P. roxburghii killed breast cancer cells, and displayed antifungal activity against the toxic Aspergillus niger fungus – which causes black mold.
Researchers from India’s Kurukshetra University found that P. roxburghii leaf extract had significant pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory effects in their laboratory studies.
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