Inflammation: Normal Process or the Cause of Disease?
Think about the last time you hurt yourself. It could have been something as little as a paper cut or as significant as a broken bone. Whatever it was, I’m sure it hurt! Do you remember how the injury looked? In addition to the pain, you may have noticed redness and swelling in the area that you injured. That pain, redness, and swelling was the result of inflammation. Inflammation can feel and look pretty lousy, but it’s also your body’s natural response to damage.
Without inflammation, no injury you sustain would ever be repaired. For this reason, inflammation is crucial. However, it’s also true that inflammation a major player in a multitude of illnesses such as heart disease, ulcerative colitis, and rheumatoid arthritis, to name a few. So, is inflammation good or bad? The short (and likely unsatisfying) answer is: It depends! Let me explain further.
As I said before, inflammation is crucial. Without it, we could not repair injuries or fight off disease. Our inflammatory response is truly a vital process. That being said, our inflammatory response is designed to be short lived. You get hurt or sick, you fix it, the inflammation goes away, you move on with your life. Think again about a paper cut. The paper cuts you, the area gets red and swollen, scabs over, repairs, and then you’re back to normal. This is how the process should work. The problem is when inflammation becomes chronic. Take heart disease as an example. In this condition, the blood vessels in the heart have become inflamed due to damage and the inflammation becomes a chronic problem. The red, swollen, and irritated tissue remains and the damage is never repaired. This type of inflammation is not the kind you want to have! When inflammation becomes chronic and uncontrolled, it is harmful and can result in very severe consequences. In these cases, it’s very important that you break this chronic inflammatory cycle before it’s too late.
So, how do you stop the inflammatory response? Couldn’t you simply take an anti-inflammatory? I suppose that is one option, but there are some major problems with this approach. For starters, it’s a short lived solution and you’ll get some hours of relief before the inflammation begins to come back. Two, you aren’t helping the underlying problem! Don’t forget about the purpose of inflammation: To repair. if you are blocking this process with medication, the damage will remain and repairing the damage will be inhibited. Inflammation needs to run it’s course in order to fix the problem. Three, anti-inflammatories are not designed for long term use. Those who take over the counter medication regularly for pain management are risking potentially severe side effects that could put you in the hospital! Don’t take these medications so lightly simply because you can buy them at the grocery store.
If medication isn’t the best answer, how should you break the inflammatory cycle? Of course, this varies based on the condition we’re talking about, but there are some common themes. For one, it’s best to limit your exposure to things that trigger inflammatory responses in the body. This could be anything from chemicals in foods to chemicals in hygiene products. It could mean quitting smoking and exercising more. Eat healthier foods that aren’t processed and reduce your sugar intake. In the case of injury, you may need to work on strength and mobility, as well as learn some ergonomics correction. The key is to learn that the inflammatory response is a result of damage to your body and correcting the damage is essential or getting real results. In order to stop damaging the body, you need to identify what I call the “triggers” in order to break the damaging process.
I’m going to say it again: Inflammation is in response to damage. Damage of your back, your arm, your heart, your intestines, etc, etc, etc. If you don’t properly repair the damage, the inflammatory response will become chronic. Learn the why behind the damage, correct for it, and you will find the right combination to feel better. If you can truly fix the underlying problem and the irritants to the system, you can finally let the body calm down.
Not sure where to begin? Feel free to reach out and let’s get you started.
Dr Rob Liguori
