Inflammation is the Root Cause of Disease

You may be hearing the term "inflammation" a lot more lately. Especially in the prescription adds that are so popular on television these days. It turns out there's a good reason for it. More and more studies are now revealing that just about every disease gets it's roots from an unresolved inflammatory process in the body. If that's the case, then it makes sense to have a better understanding about what causes inflammation and how we can prevent it.

What is inflammation? It's a process that happens when the body gets injured or compromised in some way. It may be something as simple as: a cut or a bruise or a more serious injury to an organ or vessel. This can be caused by a number of factors including excess toxins or a deficiency of nutrients. Regardless of the cause, the body undergoes an inflammatory process and tries to repair or heal itself.

The good news is, if you can reduce the inflammation in your body, you can reduce your disease potential.

Acute inflammation is usually pretty easy to control. The body will usually repair itself or a recognized protocol is used in the more serious cases of acute inflammation. However, chronic inflammation is the killer. It starts slowly and may not manifest any outward symptoms until it's progressed into a disease, which is why it's so dangerous. It's hard to fix something that you aren't aware of.

Fortunately there is a simple blood test that your doctor can perform to help you determine the

level of inflammation in your body. When an injury or an infection occurs in the body, many systems respond to handle the crisis. During the inflammatory process the body releases a protein that is produced by the liver. Your doctor can perform a blood test that measures the concentration of this c-reactive protein in your body.

Dr. Steven A. Komadina states that the results can actually predict your potential to develop heart disease and other inflammatory diseases. Here is how he evaluates the numbers in his practice:

o Less than 1 mg/L means very low risk of developing heart disease or other inflammatory diseases.

o Between 1-3 mg/L means you are at average risk.

o Higher than 3 mg/L means you are at high risk for developing heart disease or other inflammatory diseases.

o Higher than 10 mg/L means you will have a heart attack within 10 years or you have another severe inflammatory disease or you have an acute infection.

Chronic inflammation has been linked to asthma, Alzheimer's disease, cancer, diabetes, digestive disorders, heart disease, hormone imbalances and osteoporosis just to name a few. Since we know that inflammation is the root cause of disease, it just makes sense to find ways to decrease inflammation. The biggest causes of chronic inflammation are diet, stress and lifestyle. Antioxidants, another term you may be hearing about, are very helpful in reducing inflammation. In my next article I will cover more about antioxidants and other ways you can reduce the inflammation in your body. You may have to make some healthier lifestyle choices, but it's a small price to pay and you're worth it!