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Therapeutic Uses
Test-tube and animal studies suggest that LA has several potentially positive effects on the immune system. It appears to activate a type of white blood cell called a “natural killer” or NK cell, and perhaps other white blood cells as well, and also possibly alter levels of immune-related substances such as interleukins, interferon, and properdin. 1 2 3 4 On the basis of these findings, LA has been advocated as a supplement for general immune support . However, this recommendation is premature. It is a very, very long way from basic science of this type to evidence that a treatment has real effectiveness. Many plant substances appear to activate the immune system; this may be merely because the immune system regards them as “the enemy,” and mobilizes to fight them. It takes double-blind, placebo-controlled trials to determine whether theoretical effects translate into real life benefits, and thus far only one such study has been performed on LA as an immune stimulant. Unfortunately, this single meaningful trial was not designed to determine the actual medical benefits (if any) of LA. Rather, it primarily continued the theoretical investigation of LA’s effects on components of the immune system.
In this trial, 48 healthy women were assigned to receive one of four treatments: LA, echinacea, LA plus echinacea, or placebo. 5 Researchers evaluated various laboratory measurements of immune function. The results failed to show that LA by itself had any effect on immunity.
Other extremely preliminary research hints that LA might enhance the effectiveness of drugs used in cancer treatment , 6 help antibiotics fight ear infections and other infections, and enhance the immune system in people with conditions such as chronic viral hepatitis , HIV , and chronic fatigue syndrome . 7 However, all these suggestions are highly speculative and lack reliable supporting evidence.
There no doubt, however, that LA is a good dietary fiber source. Like less expensive forms of fiber, it appears to have beneficial effects in the colon. 8 A 6-month study failed to find LA helpful for improving cholesterol profile . 9
References
- Currier NL, Lejtenyi D, Miller SC. Effect over time of in-vivo administration of the polysaccharide arabinogalactan on immune and hemopoietic cell lineages in murine spleen and bone marrow. Phytomedicine. 10(2-3):145-53.
- Hauer J, Anderer FA. Mechanism of stimulation of human natural killer cytotoxicity by arabinogalactan from Larix occidentalis. Cancer Immunol Immunother. 1993;36:237–244.
- Kelly GS. Larch arabinogalactan: clinical relevance of a novel immune-enhancing polysaccharide. Altern Med Rev. 4(2):96-103.
- Odonmazig P, Ebringerova A, Machova E, et al. Structural and molecular properties of the arabinogalactan isolated from Mongolian larchwood ( Larix dahurica L.). Carbohydr Res. 1994;252:317–324.
- Kim LS, Waters RF, Burkholder PM. Immunological activity of larch arabinogalactan and Echinacea : a preliminary, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Altern Med Rev. 2002;7:138–49.
- Beuth J, Ko HL, Oette K, Pulverer G, Roszkowski K, Uhlenbruck G. Inhibition of liver metastasis in mice by blocking hepatocyte lectins with arabinogalactan infusions and D-galactose. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol. 113(1):51-5.
- Larch arabinogalactan—monograph. Altern Med Rev. 2000;5:463–466.
- Robinson RR, Feirtag J, Slavin JL. Effects of dietary arabinogalactan on gastrointestinal and blood parameters in healthy human subjects. J Am Coll Nutr. 20(4):279-85.
- Marett R, Slavin JL. No long-term benefits of supplementation with arabinogalactan on serum lipids and glucose. J Am Diet Assoc. 104(4):636-9.
