Are you part of the 1 in 20 Australians who suffer from nerve pain?¹ If so, you know firsthand how it can reduce your quality of life and take a detrimental toll on your physical and emotional health.

If you’re at the point of feeling like you’ve tried everything, read on to learn about a natural pain-relieving ingredient, PEA, that may be the answer you’ve been searching for. But first, let’s take a look at how nerve pain and other ongoing pain symptoms develop in the first place.

Nerve pain is complex; it involves both the nerves and the immune system. When part of the body is injured or under stress, such as in sciatica, fibromyalgia, or carpal tunnel syndrome, the immune system responds with inflammation.

Normally, once healing is complete, specialised cells calm the response and pain subsides. But sometimes, the body struggles to switch off pain signals to the brain. This can result in ongoing pain that affects daily life. There are two main ways this shows up:

• Nerve pain: A type of chronic pain often described as burning, tingling, numbness, or “pins and needles.” It may result from certain medications, inflammatory conditions such as diabetes or endometriosis, or from nerve trauma or compression.
• Chronic pain: pain lasting more than three months, often linked to joint damage or immune dysfunction. Because nerves lie close to joints throughout the body and spine, ongoing inflammation in these areas can make nerves more sensitive to pain. 

In some cases, specialised immune cells called glial cells make nerves more sensitive to pain signals, essentially “turning up the volume” on pain signals sent to the brain. This is where PEA (palmitoylethanolamide) plays a role. 

PEA, or palmitoylethanolamide, is a natural compound your body makes when there’s pain or inflammation. Its role is to help calm the body and bring things back into balance.

Here’s how PEA works:

• Calms pain signals: PEA reduces the sensitivity of pain-sensing receptors, so nerves don’t “overreact” and send too many pain messages.²
• Supports your natural systems: PEA boosts compounds in the endocannabinoid system (ECS), which helps control pain and inflammation in the brain, spine, and immune system.²
• Reduces inflammation: PEA quiets overactive immune and nerve-support cells, lowering the release of chemicals that keep nerves inflamed and sensitive.²

When pain or inflammation goes on for too long, the body’s own PEA supply can run low. This makes it harder to manage pain naturally. For this reason, some people with ongoing mild nerve pain and inflammation choose to take PEA as a supplement.² 

The efficacy of PEA has been demonstrated for reducing chronic pain in many clinical trials.³

Due to the complex nature of pain, we recommend you consult a Healthcare Practitioner who can tailor a pain management plan to your needs and recommend which of the following Metagenics PEA-based supplements may be most suited to your needs.

PainX Headache & Migraine: Features PEA (Palmitoylethanolamide) with Lipisperse (Levagen+) technology, for analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects. When taken at a dose of 600 mg at the start of a migraine, followed by another dose after 2 hours if needed, PEA with Levagen+ can significantly reduce pain and the need for some pain medications to manage headaches and migraines.⁴

PainX: A raspberry-flavoured powder that combines two powerful ingredients: MagActive Magnesium bisglycinate with PEA (Levagen+). Low magnesium can cause muscle tension. When magnesium levels are restored, it boosts blood flow to support muscle repair,⁵ while PEA helps reduce pain sensitivity.³ Together, they may ease chronic pain in areas like the jaw, neck, shoulder, and back.

PainX Advanced: Contains high-strength, easily absorbed PEA (Levagen+) combined with saffron and vitamin B1  for mild nerve pain and inflammation. Both PEA and saffron help with chronic pain by calming inflammation, protecting nerves, reducing pain signals and lowering hypersensitivity, which means the body doesn’t overreact to pain.³,⁴,⁶ PainX Advanced may be suitable for chronic nerve and muscular pain issues, such as sciatic pain and trapped nerve pain.

Note: BioAbsorb PEA Advanced from this diagram has been renamed PainX Advanced.

If you’re dealing with mild nerve pain and inflammation, PEA could be the missing puzzle piece in your pain management plan. It’s always best to talk with a healthcare practitioner about your individual situation. If you’re new here, we’ve also created a guide to pain relief specialists that may help.

Because PEA is fat-soluble, choosing the right supplement is important. Look for a form that’s made more water-soluble, such as PEA (palmitoylethanolamide) with LipiSperse® (Levagen+®) technology, so your body can absorb it properly through the digestive system.

Find a Practitioner in your local area, so you can discuss whether PEA could assist with your case. Providing or replenishing your body with PEA will allow it to do the work it loves to do, which is reducing your pain so you can get back to the things you enjoy.

1. NPS MedicineWise. Nerve pain, explained. Updated March 9, 2021. Accessed July 13, 2024. https://www.nps.org.au/consumers/nerve-pain-explained
2. Clayton P, Hill M, Bogoda N, Subah S, Venkatesh R. Palmitoylethanolamide: A natural compound for health management. Int J Mol Sci. 2021;22(10):5305. doi:10.3390/ijms22105305.
3. Lang-Illievich K, Klivinyi C, Lasser C, Brenna CTA, Szilagyi IS, Bornemann-Cimenti H. Palmitoylethanolamide in the Treatment of Chronic Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Trials. Nutrients. 2023 Mar 10;15(6):1350. doi: 10.3390/nu15061350.
4. Briskey D, Skinner R, Smith C, Rao A. Effectiveness of Palmitoylethanolamide (Levagen+) Compared to a Placebo for Reducing Pain, Duration, and Medication Use during Migraines in Otherwise Healthy Participants-A Double-Blind Randomised Controlled Study. Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2024 Jan 23;17(2):145. doi: 10.3390/ph17020145.
   
5. Tarsitano MG, Quinzi F, Folino K, Greco F, Oranges FP, Cerulli C, Emerenziani GP. Effects of magnesium supplementation on muscle soreness in different type of physical activities: a systematic review. J Transl Med. 2024 Jul 5;22(1):629. doi: 10.1186/s12967-024-05434-x. 
   
6. Pourbagher-Shahri AM, Forouzanfar F. Saffron (Crocus sativus) and its constituents for pain management: A review of current evidence. Phytother Res. 2023 Nov;37(11):5041-5057. doi: 10.1002/ptr.7968.