We visited our dear friend Yusuf’s wife, Gülten, after he passed and found out that three of his arteries were so badly clogged that the doctors suggested immediate bypass surgery.
As I mentioned in my post on Yusuf, he tried to lead a healthy life and Gülten told us that he walked more then an hour every day.
Was he not getting periodic blood work done? Didn’t anybody notice signs of chronic inflammation such as high CRP (C-reactive protein)?
Even though I’ve touched upon chronic inflammation before, a bit more detail could point some of my readers/friends in the right direction.
The body is an unbelievable machine. We obviously cannot live without oxygen, but did you know that
- pure oxygen is toxic to breathe below 10 meters, and
- oxygen creates free radicals and causes oxidative damage while exercising.
This is why divers use an oxygen-helium mixture rather than just oxygen and sound like Donald Duck when they speak while breathing this (helium does this).
And this is why I keep telling you to opt for anaerobic exercises rather than aerobic ones.
Our ancestors, Homo Sapiens, didn’t run (aerobic) chasing tonight’s dinner or escaping the saber-toothed tiger, they sprinted (anerobic). Plus, they were probably bare footed most of the time and were therefore grounding themselves; the best antioxidant ever.
WHY AND HOW INFLAMMATION OCCURS
Inflammation is the body’s immune response to any attack from foreign invaders, be they pathogenic microbes, synthetic chemicals, or physical impact or burns. Classic signs of acute inflammation include redness, swelling, pain, fever and loss of appetite.
This process takes place because sensor cells have detected a pathogenic invader or physical injury.
For instance when a cold virus invades your body, or when a small, dense LDL (bad cholesterol) particle gets stuck in your artery wall.
Then a host of biochemical reactions takes place in the surrounding tissue that is affected, depending on the nature of the invasion or injury.
I won’t go into the details of this complex biochemical process; suffice it to say that all these immune reactions are meant to protect our tissues and restore the body to homeostasis or functional balance.
When the body recovers, the inflammation ends. All is well. But what if these biochemical events don’t stop and the inflammatory process continues unabated?
Vaccines can and often do incite extreme reactions, called cytokine storms, where the immune system tsunami overwhelms healthy neurological tissues, leading to permanent damage, disability, or death.
Less serious cytokine reactions from vaccines often lead to chronic inflammation.
In what follows, it will become clearer why I mentioned oxygen and what an interesting machine the body is. That is to say, why our immune system can start working against us.
CHRONIC INFLAMMATION
Imagine some of the immune system reactions described going on without one’s awareness for extended periods. No pain, but maybe a vague feeling of discomfort and that everything is not OK.
That’s chronic inflammation, and it often leads to full blown life-threatening diseases like heart failure or cancer, debilitating diseases such as Parkinson’s or MS, or a chronically aggravating disease like asthma.
Chronic allergies can be indicators of an immune system gone off the rails, if the body doesn’t recognize the allergens. But there are many toxins in our food and environment that trigger this.
The immune system doesn’t recognize them, and thus reacts accordingly. This low-level constant immune system activity is chronic inflammation. Cortisol built up from constant stress creates a hormonal imbalance leading to chronic inflammation as well.
WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT THIS?
First, it’s important to avoid synthetic chemicals that are considered sub-lethal with single low dosages but accumulate in the body’s tissues to create chronic inflammation.
Two good examples are:
- Fluoridated or chlorinated water, and
- Swimming in chlorinated pools.
Remember that it is cheaper to disinfect your apartment’s tap water with chloride and use it in the swimming pool you go to. Don’t forget that your skin is the biggest organ in your body.
Don’t eat processed food; stick with organic, real food.
Don’t consume sugar, HFCS, grains, milk and milk products.
Don’t use synthetic commercial cosmetics and deodorants. Don’t touch antiperspirants.
Use natural products as household cleaners, such as dish and laundry detergents. Make your own.
Stress less, sleep better and exercise. Try not to sit for more than 3 hours a day. Read my post on “Inactivity” dated March 18, 2015.
Use turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, and ground cloves; they are inexpensive minimizers of inflammation.
Get periodic blood work done and make sure that inflammatory markers such as CRP (there are more and fasted insulin is an excellent indicator) are included.
See you all next week.
