Chronic Inflammation      

I'm writing this to inform that chronic inflammation is the underlying cause of most diseases and chronic pain. 

The Classic Signs of Inflammation are redness, swelling, heat, or pain, and to those who believe inflammation is due only to trauma and infection and that without the classic signs, inflammation is not present.

The fact is, inflammation is present in your body without these classic signs. 

There are also many other contributing factors which cause inflammation in your body, other than from infection or trauma.  Factors such as diet, stress, lack of sleep, and lack of exercise can all cause our cells to release the same inflammatory chemicals that are released with infection and trauma.  C-reactive protein would be one example of this.  

When these factors become a lifestyle, a state of chronic inflammation develops without these classic signs being present. 

• Pain and stiffness may develop down the road due to this chronicity.  Problems that start to arise may be in your musculoskeletal tissue. 

• Muscles, joints, bones, and spinal discs may degenerate over time, eventually causing pain due to chronic inflammation created by stress or a pro-inflammatory diet. 

• Diet-induced inflammation transforms the body into a degenerated state.  A heart attack is another example of how pain develops without other signs.  Coronary arteries become narrow and less flexible (atherosclerosis), causing the pain and sudden heart attack.

Acute Inflammation is not necessarily a bad thing. 

Acute inflammation acts as your body's natural defense against bacteria, toxins, viruses, and trauma. 

I'm talking about chronic inflammation when it gets out of control and begins to affect your immune system and leads to a variety of chronic diseases.  Sickness may present in the form of frequent cold and flu symptoms, asthma, allergies, arthritis, chronic fatigue, hypertension, digestive conditions, osteoporosis, depression, diabetes, and even more serious diseases such as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, Multiple Sclerosis, and cancer.

Having a better understanding of the damages inflammation poses to the body enables us to grasp the importance of getting better rest, exercising, avoiding stress by taking some time out for yourself each day, and subscribing to a non-inflammatory diet filled with leafy greens, broccoli, fatty fish, berries, nuts, avocados, and olive oil to name a few.  Some inflammatory foods to avoid would be sugar, refined foods, processed meats, and vegetable oils.  

So make the lifestyle changes necessary to avoid this chronic inflammatory state and live a healthy, vibrant life.