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The Role of the Fight or Flight System in Fibromyalgia Pain (ADRA1A)
ADRA1A is a receptor that helps manage the fight or flight response. What is its role in pain perception and fibromyalgia? Read on to find out.
The ADRA1A Gene in Fibromyalgia
- The ADRA1A gene encodes a receptor for epinephrine (adrenaline) [R].
- Epinephrine is one of the major signals responsible for the fight or flight response [R].
- Patients with fibromyalgia, a chronic pain disorder, may have an abnormal epinephrine response to stress [R, R].
- Drugs that increase the activity of adrenergic receptors (like ADRA1A) have helped some people with fibromyalgia [R].
Learn More About the Adrenergic Response
To learn more about epinephrine and the fight or flight response, check out this post.
Once epinephrine has been used, it is broken down by MAOA and COMT. Check out our SelfHacked post on MAOA and our new COMT gene report for more about how to keep these important enzymes in balance.
The dopamine beta-hydroxylase (DBH) enzyme converts dopamine into norepinephrine, an important step in the production of epinephrine. For more about the role of DBH in pain, check out this post [R].
Your genes for these three enzymes can help you make an informed decision about your adrenergic system, including ADRA1A.
Your ADRA1A Results for Fibromyalgia
SNP Table
ADRA1A rs1048101
- ‘G’ = Not associated with abnormal response to epinephrine; not associated with fibromyalgia
- ‘A’ = Associated with increased disability in fibromyalgia
- The ‘A’ allele may promote the feeling of pain by reducing adrenergic receptor activity [R].
ADRA1A rs1383914
- ‘C’ = Not associated with abnormal response to epinephrine; not associated with fibromyalgia
- ‘T’ = Associated with increased incidence of fibromyalgia
- The ‘T’ allele may promote the feeling of pain by reducing the amount of ADRA1A gene expression [R].
ADRA1A rs574584
- ‘T’ = Not associated with abnormal response to epinephrine; not associated with fibromyalgia
- ‘C’ = Associated with increased disability and pain in fibromyalgia patients
- The ‘C’ allele may promote the feeling of pain by reducing the amount of ADRA1A gene expression [R].
Recommendations
Lifestyle
Intense Experiences
- Epinephrine and norepinephrine, the “fight or flight” signals, increase in response to stress and fear. However, they also come into play during intense positive experiences!
- Animal and human studies have confirmed that powerful emotions of all kinds can trigger an adrenergic response [R, R].
- That means that any experience that makes you feel strongly (and requires a lot of brain power to process) may increase adrenergic activity.
- People with fibromyalgia may have a reduced adrenergic response to exercise, low blood sugar, and other physical stressors, so your results may vary if you have a fibromyalgia diagnosis [R].
- You may want to seek out intense experiences (like roller coasters or scary movies) to see whether you feel any change.
Intense experiences—both good and bad—stimulate the adrenergic response.
Diet
High Protein Foods
- Your body uses the amino acids phenylalanine and tyrosine to make epinephrine [R].
- Basically, any food rich in protein (meat, fish, cheese, nuts, etc.) will provide phenylalanine and tyrosine for your body to make epinephrine [R, R, R].
- High protein diets may also help fibromyalgia patients manage pain. According to one study, patients with higher protein intake had a higher pain threshold than those who ate less protein [R].
High-protein foods supply the buildings blocks for producing epinephrine, which stimulates ADRA1A receptors.
Supplements
Caffeine
- Caffeine stimulates the adrenergic system and causes epinephrine levels to rise. One study found that coffee elevates epinephrine levels in the urine by 32% [90].
- According to multiple studies, the addition of caffeine to painkillers (most often ibuprofen and Tylenol) slightly but significantly improves their effectiveness for acute pain [R, R, R, R].
- For pain, caffeine works much better in combination with other painkillers than it does by itself [R, R, R, R].
Caffeine works in part by stimulating the adrenergic system, including ADRA1A.
Disclaimer
The information on this website has not been evaluated by the Food & Drug Administration or any other official medical body. This information is presented for educational purposes only, and may not be used to diagnose or treat any illness or disease.
Also keep in mind that the “Risk Score” presented in this post is based only on a select number of SNPs, and therefore only represents a small portion of your total risk as an individual. Furthermore, these analyses are based primarily on associational studies, which do not necessarily imply causation. Finally, many other (non-genetic) factors can also play a significant role in the development of a disease or health condition — therefore, carrying any of the risk-associated genotypes discussed in this post does not necessarily mean you are at increased risk of developing a major health condition.
Always consult your doctor before acting on any information or recommendations discussed in this post — especially if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or have been officially diagnosed with a medical condition.
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