Cats may have nine lives, but we don't have that luxury. We have one life to make the most of this world...so don't let chronic inflammation take it over.
I mentioned briefly last week that inflammation is not always bad. How many of you, while walking in your house, have accidentally banged your knee on the table or tripped on a toy your child left behind? When we injure ourselves, our body immediately goes into tissue recovery mode. Acute inflammation, or temporary inflammation, is a necessary defense mechanism in our body.
It's when inflammation continues after you've healed...that's when it becomes chronic and dangerous.
Below are nine signs that you may suffer from chronic inflammation:
- Random muscle aches / joint pain - cytokines may be attacking your own tissue which can cause pain, swelling or redness
- Increased rashes - especially if you have psoriasis or eczema, inflammation could cause rashes to worsen or trigger them to appear
- Mucus production - inflammation can cause your mucous membranes to create phlegm (gross!) leading you to have to clear your throat, blow your nose or sneeze.
- Constant fatigue - even if you get a proper amount of sleep daily, you may be waking up tired and exhausted because your immune system is not taking a hiatus, it keeps working because of the presence of inflammation in your body.
- Insomnia - sleep is extremely important when it comes to healing because it helps regulate your internal systems via circadian rhythms...if you're constantly inflamed, you probably are not sleeping well and it ends up being a cycle.
- Depression and/or Anxiety - cytokines can affect an autoimmune response in the brain leading to mood disorders...you also need to factor in the fact that you may not be sleeping well or you are fatigued due to inflammation. It's hard to be happy if you're tired or stressed all the time.
- Constipation, Acid Reflux, Diarrhea or Bloating - when you're inflamed for a long period of time, your gut may "leak" toxins or other bacteria into the rest of your body causing gas and other problems.
- Weight Gain - it's harder to lose weight when you have inflammation, a study found that as people's weight increased, so did CRP (C-Reactive Protein)
- Dry Eyes - damage to your ocular cells can occur when you are inflamed
You may notice one or several of these signs because some are intertwined more than others. Curcumin is one of the best natural paths to reducing inflammation on a daily basis. Make sure you take a Turmeric supplement daily. My Turmeric Gold is still the most potent, natural supplement on the market.
