Alright, again… and Welcome Back!

In the last two blogs I have been talking about silent inflammation- also known as low-grade, chronic inflammation and the damage it does to the body, and ultimately you!

So what are some of the things that cause, silent, chronic, low-grade inflammation?

In my opinion, LIFESTYLE, LIFESTYLE, LIFESTYLE.

Lifestyle is what you do to put yourself in the best position to win whatever game, or games you want to play, or are playing. As your OWN primary health care provider you decide your livingness, your vocation, recreation, the food you eat, and how you look at the world around you, etc.

Many think it’s the environment, genetics or age, but believe it or not, you can influence each of these with your lifestyle and what you think about the life you are living.

Environment? Move or change it. Genetics? You don’t have to do those things that express some of the bad information in your genes. Age? It’s really just a number.

You are going to put your body under many different stresses and strains- bad food, bad air, pollution, stress, unhealthy bugs…, but your immune system is right there to help you combat these things if you give it a chance.  Let it do its thing, let it help you resolve the problem and then YOU make sure it shuts off by eating healthy, getting plenty of sleep, exercising, hanging around cool people who support you, and managing stress. If not, you will remain under attack and really will never get totally well.

So how does a person know if he has chronic, low-grade inflammation? Really just look at your life.

Smoking, drinking, overweight, no exercise, poor diet, constant stress and agitation, not enough sleep….

Unfortunately, there really aren’t any specific blood tests, or X-rays to tell us. There might be some questionnaires, but these would all show you how you think about your life and how you live. Best thing? Take a look at yourself and the world around you. Is it good, or always bad?  Are you a part of the world around you and doing something to make it the way you want it? How do you look in the mirror? Is your waist under 40 inches for a male and 36 inches for a female? If not, you are chronically inflamed.

Are you sleeping? This is soooooooooooooooo huge, and soooooooooooooooooo often neglected. It’s sleep! You lay there and go to dreamland. Come on- it’s easy! Lack of sleep will eventually make you psychotic- literally!

Do you like the people you are around, your job, your friends, your family?

For now, just look around and ask yourself, “Am I happy?”

If not, what changes CAN you make, not what would you like to make, but CAN make right now and make them?

Now take a look. Does the world around you look better? If not, what other changes can you make right now, and do those?

Well, I’m starting to run out of words, so I’ll have to continue this next time.

The point is there are no magic cures for anything- just you, and fortunately, that’s all you need. Start communicating in the direction you want to head and you will start to live in that direction. It’s magic! You will start to create the world you want to live in, and I can think of no better way to handle chronic, silent, low-grade inflammation.

Until next time!

Best Wishes,

Dr. Dave