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Inflammation is part of the body's wisdom. Inflammation is the body's first response to an injury or disease. It tells you in no uncertain terms "Houston, we have a problem." Inflammation informs you that you need to pay attention to an injured or diseased area so that you don't continue to use it and worsen the problem.
Webster defines inflammation as "redness, swelling and fever in a local area of the body, often with pain and disturbed function, in reaction to an infection or to a physical or chemical injury."
Acute inflammation is short term. You injure your shoulder. You feel pain, it swells and might turn red. You rest it, ice and when it heals, you should be good as new. The problem with inflammation is that it can self perpetuate. Systemic enzymes and other natural anti-inflammatories can prevent this or interrupt the process once it starts.
Inflammation Run Amuck
Inflammation is an immune system response. It is initially beneficial when your shoulder needs protection and care. But it can become self-perpetuating. The body creates more inflammation in response to the existing inflammation. Sometimes the immune system goes haywire and triggers an inflammatory response when there is no injury or disease process present. This is an autoimmune disease.
Almost every disease or condition exhibits an element of inflammation. It might surprise you that it's a major culprit in:
- heart disease
- high blood pressure
- arthritis
- lupus
- Chron's disease
- rheumatoid arthritis
- alzheimer's disease
- irritable bowel syndrome
- colitis
- migraines
- tendonitis
- fatigue
- scar tissue
Aches And Pains
During my nineteen years as a licensed massage therapist, I have seen inflammation up close and personal every working day. Most of my clients who feel pain are experiencing inflammation. It may be localized as in a pulled muscle or tendonitis or generalized inflammation as in fibromyalgia. Symptoms of inflammation can range from mild achiness to sharp, wrenching pain that takes your breath away. Migraine headaches, fatigue, and fibromyalgia are examples of the different forms that inflammation can assume. When you look at the diversity of the symptoms, you would automatically think they need to be treated in different ways. At least that's what the medical establishment would like you to believe. A different pill for each ailment. If you look at the cause rather than the symptom, you will see the faulty logic. If you address the cause (inflammation), you can have a major impact on many seemingly diverse conditions. Your health can improve in ways you might not have thought possible.
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