Health Care and Inflammation

Do you ever suffer from joint pain or other maladies caused by inflammation? It’s more common than you may think. Inflammation is typically defined as a localized physical condition in which part of the body becomes reddened, swollen, hot, and often painful, especially as a reaction to injury or infection.

According to LiveScience, inflammation is a vital part of the body's immune response. It is the body's attempt to heal itself after an injury; defend itself against foreign invaders, such as viruses and bacteria; and repair damaged tissue. Without inflammation, wounds would fester and infections could become deadly. 

Inflammation can also be problematic, though, and it plays a role in some chronic diseases. Inflammation is often characterized by redness, swelling, warmth, and sometimes pain and some immobility. Much more detailed information is located at this website: http://www.livescience.com/52344-inflammation.html.

In a delicate balance of give-and-take, inflammation begins when pro-inflammatory hormones in your body call out for your white blood cells to come and clear out infection and damaged tissue, according to WomenToWomen. These agents are matched by equally powerful, closely related anti-inflammatory compounds, which move in once the threat is neutralized to begin the healing process.

Acute inflammation that ebbs and flows as needed signifies a well-balanced immune system. But symptoms of inflammation that don’t recede are telling you that the “on” switch to your immune system is stuck. It’s poised on high alert — even when you aren’t in imminent danger. In some cases, what started as a healthy mechanism, like building scar tissue or swelling, just won’t shut off. More material about inflammation is available at this website: https://www.womentowomen.com/inflammation/causes-of-inflammation/.

According to Prevention Magazine, scientists refer to the immune response gone rogue as chronic inflammation and have identified it as a contributor to a wide range of conditions, including heart disease, asthma, and joint pain. Since studies started making these links in the early 2000s, the term inflammation has become somewhat of a buzzword, bandied about by health nuts and doctors alike.

Some physicians consider it such an important predictor of poor health that they monitor patients' blood for a marker of inflammation, called C-reactive protein, as part of a standard workup. This testing is still uncommon, and it's somewhat controversial, but more and more doctors are adjusting to the idea of quantifying how sick is their patient…really. One hundred million Americans suffer from chronic pain, and they deal with it day after day with no clear fix. Twenty-one million have depression, and for many of them, medication and therapy help only so much.

Meanwhile, scientists are still exploring what inflammation is and how it might be responsible for so many health problems like depression and depression symptoms. Much more detail on the connection between inflammation and depression is located at this site: http://www.prevention.com/health/health-concerns/.

Inflammation has become a medical hot topic, according to Women’s Health Magazine. More and more research shows that chronic inflammation is involved in heavy-hitting illnesses like the following:

·         Cancer

·         Heart disease

·         Diabetes

·         Depression

·         Allergies

It all starts with the immune system, the body's first line of defense against any kind of harm. When you're injured or sick, your bone marrow dispatches veritable SWAT teams of white blood cells to root out infection and jump-start the healing process. Sometimes, however, the immune system gets a faulty distress signal and deploys an unnecessary first-aid squad. Those misguided white blood cells still mobilize just like they would if you were actually under the weather, but because there's no infection for them to attack, they end up just hanging around, often for a long, long time.

However, the problem is that your body isn't made to accommodate this kind of unfocused immune activity, and eventually those white blood cells can start damaging your internal organs. They can also needlessly assault other cells the body routinely uses to push off disease, leaving the door cracked open for illnesses such as cancer. More information on inflammation is located at this website: http://www.womenshealthmag.com/health/chronic-inflammation.

For centuries, scientists have debated whether inflammation is good or bad for you, according to New Yorker Magazine. Now they believe that it’s both: too little, and microbes fester and spread in the body, or wounds fail to heal; too much, and nearby healthy tissue can be degraded or destroyed. The fire of inflammation must be tightly controlled—turned on at the right moment and, just as critically, turned off.

Understanding and controlling inflammation has become a central goal of modern medical investigation. The internal research arm of the National Institutes of Health recently designated inflammation a priority, mobilizing several hundred scientists and hundreds of millions of dollars to better define its role in health and disease. More detailed material about this topic is available at this site: http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/11/30/inflamed.

According to BodyEcology, there are many reasons why you may suffer from inflammation:

·         Chronic low-grade food allergies or food sensitivities that may cause a few symptoms.

·         An imbalance of bacteria and fungi in your gastrointestinal tract, also known as dysbiosis. This causes your immune system to overreact to bacteria in your gut and can be without notable symptoms.

·         Stress! Constant psychological, emotional or physical stress raises the level of cortisol, creating inflammation.

·         Environmental toxicity from air, water, food pollutants and toxic metals like mercury and lead all contribute to inflammation and have been linked to diseases as varied as endometriosis and cancer.

·         Diet and lifestyle: too much fat, sugar, and protein in your diet, constant dehydration, consumption of too many sodas or caffeine, inactivity, and lack of sleep can all increase inflammation in your body.

If you reduce inflammation in your body, you'll not only look and feel younger, but you'll significantly lower your risk for chronic disease. More info on this subject is located at this site: http://bodyecology.com/articles/inflammation_cause_of_disease_how_to_prevent.php.

According to Mercola, the presence of inflammation is what makes most disease perceptible to an individual. It can and often does occur for years before it exists at levels sufficient to be apparent or clinically significant. How long it has been smoldering really determines the degree of severity of a disease and often the prognosis assuming the inflammation can be controlled.

Inflammation is rampant. In fact 1 in 12 women and 1 in 24 men are dealing with full blown autoimmune mediated inflammation. The number of undiagnosed people is going to be much higher. People with inflammation in the early phases of autoimmunity will often claim no dietary involvement. This is an inaccurate assumption however because the autoimmunity is often triggered by factors not strictly related to diet and the diet can become a secondary trigger later in the development of the condition.

If you are dealing with inflammation, then get a comprehensive professional medical evaluation to look at what is perpetuating your personal situation. More information is located at this website: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/03/07/inflammation-triggers-disease-symptoms.aspx.

Inflammation can be good for you when it’s controlled. When it is out of control, then your natural healing process needs help. See your doctor in cases of acute or ongoing inflammation, and recognize the symptoms of how your personal situation have developed. Diagnosis and treatment in a timely manner are worth the time and effort to discover the cause and possible options for your own healthcare when you suffer from inflammation.

Until next time.