Inflammation is the number one medical issue facing people in North America today. There are four sources of inflammation and each one requires a pretty lengthy explanation. Rather than presenting our Weekly Wellness Report as an exhaustive list of “what may go wrong” I would like to cover:The major categories of inflammation
How you can protect yourself Nutrients you can use to help reduce inflammation
Cause #1: Toxins
Toxins cause inflammation by penetrating healthy tissue in your body and hiding there. Your immune system knows they are there and responds with acute inflammation to eradicate them – even killing healthy cells to get rid of the toxins. Toxins create death when more cells die in a single day than your body can replace with healthy cells.
Sometimes this happens very quickly, as with infection from the H1-N1 flu epidemic. The virus inhabits the lungs and airways. Your body responds with immune cells which douse the viral toxin with inflammation. So many lung cells are killed in the process that the host simply can’t replace the sick, toxic cells with new, healthy cells and the patient dies.
Sometimes toxins kill more slowly, as with air pollution causing lung cancer. Inflammation kills diseased cells but at such a slow rate that a few replacement cells keep the lungs functioning. However, over time the rate of cell replacement cannot keep up with the rate of cell death and the patient dies of a chronic lung disease such as cancer or emphysema.
Toxins are produced outside our body as well as inside our body. We must insulate ourselves from external toxins and keep our body shiny and clean on the inside through vigorous application of the 10 Essentials for Health and Wellness. Supplements such as Nopalea and Vitamin C can be very helpful in releasing hidden toxins.
Cause #2: Deficiency
Your body must replace millions of cells every hour. Building healthy cells requires that we have healthy building materials in our system all the time: oxygen, water, vitamins, minerals, enzymes and many other elements. We must give our body time to rebuild with 7 ½ to 9 hours of peaceful sleep every night.
If any element in your health routine is missing for even a moment, a cell will be created without critical building materials and the cell will be weak. A single weak cell will be eliminated by the acute inflammation of our immune system. However, poor nutrition day after day and poor sleep night after night will create a deficit between the number of healthy cells you have and the number of healthy cells you need to live. Chronic inflammation is the way your body deals with this deficit. It is the seedbed for infection, disease and an early death.
Pay close attention to the 10 Essentials and support your body with Healthy Aging nutrients. A multiple vitamin/mineral supplement, OmegaPrime, Vitamin C and Sublingual B-12 are basics for wellness.
Cause #3: Emotional Distress
Stress describes the forces trying to tear us apart: toxins and deficiencies, gravity and weather, injuries, expectations and time pressures. These are examples of things that pull us apart. The forces trying to pull us back together – homeostasis – are seen in the 10 Essentials: deep breathing, pure water, peaceful sleep, nutritious food, daily activity, emotional and spiritual support.
Emotional distress is based on how we appraise or evaluate changes in our environment. All changes are stressful – even “good” changes such as a raise at work or a new, healthy grandbaby! The changes that threaten our health and create long-term, chronic stress are those that may cause pain or loss to ourselves or to someone we care about, or that may overextend our coping resources.
Support yourself against this dangerous cause of inflammation by creating a healthy community of people around you. Use Healthy Aging supplements to create a solid foundation for coping with daily stress. Especially consider adaptogens to build a bulwark against the onslaught of daily stress from outside, inside your body and even inside your mind.
Cause #4: Injuries and Trauma
Acute inflammation is the normal response to trauma. Acute inflammation is characterized by pain, swelling, redness and heat. Using Quick-Relief Formula and Quick-Relief Gel can expedite the repair process by supporting homeostasis during the early days following an injury. I often see people benefit from taking Quick-Relief capsules (while awake) for three days following an injury. Keep the external region bathed in Quick-Relief Gel during this crisis stage.
OptimaFlex is another excellent source for a more chronic injury. OptimaFlex combined with Nopalea is an excellent combination for the discomfort and loss of mobility that characterizes chronic inflammation.
Conclusion
There are four basic causes of inflammation; therefore, there are four basic causes of chronic disease. Work to insulate yourself from these malevolent influences with appropriate nutrients and emotional/spiritual nurturing and you will improve the quantity and quality of your life!
TriVita's Weekly Wellness Report [mailto:weeklywellnessreport@trivita.com]
