Inflammation: one of the fundamental causes of disease
Inflammation is a fundamental process through which the body attempts to control damage. For instance, our white blood cells and inflammatory chemicals protect us from infections from bacteria, viruses, fungus, and parasites. Due to the stresses of our lifestyle, our diet, and other habits, many people suffer from a state of chronic inflammation, leading to increased susceptibility to the many “degenerative diseases” common today.
In some diseases, however, the body’s defense system—the immune system, inappropriately and unwisely—triggers an inflammatory response when there are no foreign substances threatening us, and causes illness. Such diseases are called “autoimmune”, in which the body’s normally protective immune system causes damage to its own tissues. There may be several reasons for this. Sometimes the immune system recognizes a molecular structure similar to a piece of a virus or bacterium, termed “molecular mimicry”. Other times it may be “primed” to react to specific tissues. Chemicals, heavy metals, and unusual deposits in tissues trigger or further inflammation. More and more, inflammatory processes are being identified as important components of chronic diseases. Immunological and inflammatory damage is in large part executed by oxidative stress and free radicals. These are highly reactive oxygen and nitrogen biochemicals with unpaired electrons, which characteristically react with the closest cell structures to destroy them. The process may occur with proteins directly, or sugars and lipids to generate oxidized products that can then react with proteins, or DNA or RNA. These reactions ultimately disrupt cell structure and cause its death, contributing to disease development, especially cancer, and aging.
What is the role of nutrition in inflammation?
A major review (PubMed 29689382), said “Diet and nutrition have played an important role in maintaining physiological homeostasis. Recent literature emphasizes the poltential therapeutic effects of micronutrients found in natural products, indicating positive applications for controlling the pathogenesis of chronic diseases driven by an inflammatory nidus. Nutritional compounds which display anti-inflammatory and antioxidants effects have specific applications in preventing oxidtative stress induced injury which characterizes their pathogenesis. Patient control over diet and disease has been demonstrated in diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, rheumatology, carcinogenesis and other diseases. Polyphenolic compounds are ubiquitous dietary…”
What they are saying here is that inflammation, an early and key step in such illness may be changed by diet and nutrition, in the broad sense. This is especially true of supplements which have greater concentrations of these components. How will you decide which will help your particular situation? Consider making an appointment to review this exact question, and begin an exciting program to improve your health without further suffering.
What diseases are associated with inflammation?
Just a few examples…
Musculoskeletal: Rheumatoid arthritis, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, Mixed connective tissue diseases, Shoulder tendinitis or bursitis, Gouty arthritis, Polymyalgia rheumatic, Ankylosing Spondylitis, Osteoporosis
- Skin: Pemphigus, Psoriasis, Vitiligo
- Cardiovascular: Atherosclerosis, Hypertension, Kawasaki’s disease and other forms of arteritis, Myocarditis, Peripheral arterial disease
- Blood diseases: Aplastic anemia, Antiphospholipid antibody syndromes, Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, Septic shock
- Lung: Asthma, Sarcoid, Hypersensitivities, and many other ailments
- Urinary system: Interstitial cystitis
- Endocrine system: Addison’s disease, Hashimoto’s disease, Grave’s disease, Diabetes Type I, PCOS, Ovarian Failure
- Kidney-many varieties: Goodpasture’s syndrome, IgA Glomerulopathy
- Gastrointestinal: Crohn’s disease, Celiac disease, Pernicious anemia, Autoimmune hepatitis, Primary biliary cirrhosis
- Cancer: inflammatory changes are involved at different steps
- Nervous system: Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis, Guillain-Barré syndrome, Multiple sclerosis, Myasthenia gravis, Fibromyalgia, Chronic fatigue syndrome, Major Depression, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, ALS
- Multisystem: Obesity, Metabolic Syndrome, Complications of major injuries… and many others in each category
We maintain a high degree of interest in this process, which is central to so many illnesses common in our lives today.
We are members of the Inflammation Research Association, International Society for the Study of Fatty Acids and Lipids, Society for Free Radical Research (London), Metabolic Syndrome Institute, and The Mitochondrial Society.
The components of health that drive our purpose and methods are summarized in our logo:
Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) combined art and science to create the perfectly proportioned human (c1492). Building on Greek mathematical principles, the Vitruvian Man is an illustration of how balance and symmetry in health can produce extraordinary results from several core principles. The most basic of these components were emphasized by Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine. Years later this was expressed as Sit mens sana in corpore sano.
The original work is stored in the Gallerie dell’Accademia, Venice. One of Da Vinci’s most memorable quotes was: “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” This is a variant of Occam’s razor [William Ockham (c. 1285–1349)]: Entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem, or “Don’t make things unnecessarily complicated.” Razor refers to shaving off unnecessary assumptions to get to the simplest explanation, which has been used to guide scientists to basic explanations. Unfortunately, the pendulum has swung the other way, since the more science advances, the more we see that Mother Nature is extremely complex.
Commitment includes personal responsibility and ownership of your own health.
