However, uncontrolled, chronic or systemic inflammation is a distinct kind of BAD inflammation, the dark side of what should be a healing process. It occurs when the tissue is continuously injured by infection, stress, irritation, etc…thereafter, chronic inflammation ensues.

This is how what should be a healthy defense system turns into a ruthless, life-threatening destroyer.

Here is what happens in more detail…

Inflamed tissue is flooded with macrophages looking to remove the damaged cells from the injured tissue. These cells are powerful defenders for the body, but in an unhealthy, or more specifically, an unbalanced body, bad things can happen.

Dr. William Meggs, in his book “The Inflammation Cure” explains it this way:

“Ideally, inflammation should subside when the pathogens are killed, or when the insult is removed and the body tissue heals. When the virus that causes the common cold dies…When the cut on your arm heals. The chemical messengers stop ringing the inflammation alarm, and blood vessels and the lymphatic system carry the excess fluid, dead pathogens, damaged cells, and leaked blood cells away from the site of inflammation. Unfortunately, when the body becomes unbalanced, the system can overreact, or stop working, or turn against us, or just continue fighting small battles every day so that inflammation continues indefinitely.”

This is why uncontrolled or chronic inflammation is almost always accompanied by tissue destruction.

Typically, inflammation is characterized by redness, swollen joints that are warm to touch, joint pain, joint stiffness, or loss of joint function.

However, inflammation may also be associated with general “flu-like” symptoms.

But, most interestingly, and probably most relevant to us, uncontrolled inflammation can affect internal organs in the same way that it affects the other tissue in our body such as the joints.

The symptoms you may feel depends on which organs are affected.

For example:

In fact, pain may not be a primary symptom of an uncontrolled inflammatory response, since many organs do not have many pain-sensitive nerves.

In that way, uncontrolled inflammation secretly and silently destroys our cells, only to be detected once a significant amount of damage produces an obvious symptom.

So, the goal should be, not to just “treat” uncontrolled inflammation but to prevent it.

How?

By keeping your body balanced. By understanding what you can do to make sure your body has what it needs to fight infection, disease, toxins, viruses and injuries normally.

We all know that we need to exercise and eat healthy foods.

We all know that vitamins and supplements are beneficial.

In fact, many people seeking a natural cure spend hundreds of dollars a year on vitamins, minerals and other beneficial supplements.

Maybe you are one of them…

And, although you may have had a measure of success with the variety of supplements you have taken over the years, you may not have experienced a true breakthrough.

Well, here is something that you should know…

Understanding a little known, but increasingly mentioned, molecule produced naturally by our bodies is the key to a true breakthrough in fighting uncontrolled inflammation.

This molecule is called glutathione or GSH. A chemical or substance our body produces by itself which has been called the “master antioxidant”.

Understanding what glutathione is, how it works and how to increase the bodies ability to produce this life sustaining molecule has recently transformed the quality of life for many.

It can make a difference in your life as well.

Inflammation is your first line of defense against bacteria, toxins and viral infection.

Inflammation helps you repair and heal each and every cell of your body.

Without a healthy, powerful inflammatory process you would indeed die.

However, and this is the real point, long-term or severe or chronic or uncontrolled (pick the name you prefer) inflammation is a killer.

In fact, numerous medical publications as well news media such as the New York Times and CNN have reported that inflammation is the common thread in heart disease and other major illnesses, as well as a host of diseases related to aging, including arthritis, Alzheimer’s, osteoporosis, and some forms of cancer.

Inflammation is good for you but the key to good health, the real secret, is helping your body balance the intricate systems of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory forces.

In other words, you need to take control of inflammation and stop letting it control you!

Noted author, Dr. William Meggs puts it this way in his book The Inflammation Cure, “Inflammation may well turn out to be the elusive Holy Grail of medicine–the single phenomenon that holds the key to sickness and health.”

Taking control of inflammation and balancing your body’s inflammatory response is possible. You can succeed in naturally reducing dangerous pro-inflammatory reactions and even prevent the disastrous effects of chronic inflammation.

Inflammation911.com is exclusively dedicated to helping you do just that.

Who is Dr. Hyman?

Dr. Hyman graduated with a B.A. from Cornell University, magna cum laude from the Ottawa University School of Medicine, and from the University of San Francisco ‘s program in Family Medicine at the Community Hospital of Santa Rosa. He is board certified in Family Medicine, and resides in western Massachusetts with his family.

And you may want to know how to find out if chronic or acute inflammation is stealing your health from you, right now?

How do you go about finding out? That is the question this post will answer…

There are actually two tests that can be done:

1. C-Reactive Protein Test (cRP for short)
2. Erythrocyte Sediment Rate Test (ESR for short)

Which is better? Well, each gives the same type of information but the c-reactive protein test is favored by most doctors because it is viewed as a more “current” indicator of inflammation levels.

So, chances are, when you visit the doctor he will order you up a CRP, send you to the lab and wait for results.

What will you be hoping NOT to see?

You don’t want to find a high or increasing amount of CRP in your blood. This would suggest that you have an acute infection with lots of localized inflammation or systemic (whole body) inflammation.

In a healthy person, the CRP level is usually less than 10 mg/L. In fact, in a healthy individual there is no CRP detectable in the blood at all.

But most serious infections and unbalanced inflammatory conditions result in CRP levels well above 100 mg/L.

A better CRP test?

There is a more sensitive CRP test, called a high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) assay. This more elaborate and expensive test is usually prescribed to determine a person’s risk for heart disease because many medical professionals realize the connection between inflammation and heart disease.

The range between normal and high risk is much smaller in the hs-CRP test. If your hs-CRP level is lower than 1.0 mg/L, you have a low risk of developing cardiovascular disease but if your levels of hs-CRP level is higher than 3.0 mg/L, you have a high risk of heart disease.

In fact, studies show that the risk for heart attack and other related heart diseases in people in the high risk hs-CRP category is twice that of those whose hs-CRP level is in the normal risk range.

Indeed, a growing number of heart health related studies have examined what high levels of hs-CRP predicts and have found a consistent connection with:

• recurrent coronary events
• lower survival rates
• risk that an artery will reclose after it’s been opened by balloon angioplasty
• recurrent events in patients with stroke or peripheral arterial disease

So, is it important for you to know your personal CRP or hs-CRP?

Well, of course you should ask your doctor that question but think about this. Would you do anything different if you found out that you did have high levels of inflammation in your body? Would you eat healthier? Would you exercise? Would you avoid stressful and toxic environments?

Perhaps… Sometimes a dose of cold hard facts turns out to be a wake up call.

But, in the meantime, why wait for a severe infection or the onset of heart disease to prompt your doctor to prescribe a CRP test. Take action now by doing everything you can to avoid inflammatory triggers and balance your inflammatory response.