LOW DOSE NALTREXONE
Naltrexone is a class of drug known as an opiate antagonist. Its typical use is in treating addiction to opiate drugs such as heroin or morphine. The dose used for this purpose is usually between 50 and 300mg daily.
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Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) refers to daily dosages of naltrexone that are approximately 10% or less of the typical opioid addiction treatment dosage, commonly up to 5mg. At these low doses naltrexone exhibits properties including analgesia and anti-inflammatory not reported at larger dosages.
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LDN is a safe treatment that has been used for over 20 years in patients for a variety of conditions involving chronic inflammation or immune dysregulation such as Crohn’s disease, CPRS, Fibromyalgia, Celiac disease, Inflammatory bowel disease, Lupus, Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, Rheumatoid arthritis, Ulcerative colitis, and Lyme disease.
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DIGGING DEEPER: HOW LOW DOSE NALTREXONE WORKS​
The mechanism of action of Low Dose Naltrexone is still being researched, current theory as to the mechanism of action of LDN is summarized below.
LDN is an opioid antagonist that blocks the reception of opiates and endorphins. Given its low dose LDN briefly, e.g. for 3-4 hours, obstructs opiate receptors and the effects of endorphins. Blocking opiate receptors produces analgesia. The endorphin deficit causes increased production of endorphins.
The elevated levels of endorphins usually last around 18-20 hours. During this time the elevated endorphins up-regulate key elements of the body’s immune cells.
LDN may also antagonize Toll-like receptor 4 that are found on macrophages, including microglia, and any reported anti-inflammatory effects may also be due to this effect.
These LDN effects are not been seen at standard doses.
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Low-Dose Naltrexone has been shown to be effective in boosting immune systems in doses of 1.5-, 3- and 4.5-mg capsules, generally not more than 5mg.
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To obtain LDN have your doctor send the prescription to Belle Mead Pharmacy. Should your doctor not know of LDN they can call Belle Mead for clinical guidance.