{"id":2323,"date":"2022-05-18T12:19:25","date_gmt":"2022-05-18T04:19:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/linogreen.com\/?p=2323"},"modified":"2024-04-24T12:21:35","modified_gmt":"2024-04-24T04:21:35","slug":"the-fire-within-inflammation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/linogreen.com\/en\/2022\/05\/18\/the-fire-within-inflammation\/","title":{"rendered":"The Fire Within \u2013 Inflammation"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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In general, inflammation refers to the body’s natural response to an offending agent, such as tissue damage or injury, or infection, which involves the recruitment of mononuclear leukocytes (monocyte and lymphocytes). Acute inflammation relatively occurs in short duration, lasting for a few hours or days, depending on the severity of the injury and generally a controlled inflammation that benefits the body by protecting against tissue damage or any harmful agent. In contrast to acute inflammation, chronic inflammation lasts for a prolonged period such as a few months, years and even a lifetime.<\/p>

What happens if inflammation left untreated?<\/strong><\/p>

Chronic inflammation, if left untreated, would trigger your body to persistently produce inflammatory chemicals, causing long-term damage to healthy cells. Of grave concern is chronic inflammation has an established association with chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes (figure 1).<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Figure 1: Consequences of chronic inflammation<\/p>

Chronic diseases kill 41 million people yearly, accounting for 71% of global total mortality, according to the World Health Organization. Chronic diseases, also known as noncommunicable diseases, are distinguished by their long latency period and multifactorial nature, which includes genetic, behavioural, and environmental factors (table 1).<\/p>
Genetic <\/span><\/span><\/td>Behavioural <\/span><\/span><\/td>Environmental <\/span><\/span><\/td><\/tr>
Gene mutation <\/span><\/span><\/td>

Tobacco use, <\/span><\/span><\/p>

exposure to secondhand smoke <\/span><\/span><\/p><\/td>

Air pollution, water pollution <\/span><\/span><\/td><\/tr>
\u00a0<\/td>Unhealthy diet <\/span><\/span><\/td>Ultraviolet radiation <\/span><\/span><\/td><\/tr>
\u00a0<\/td>Physical inactivity<\/span><\/span><\/td>Endocrine-disrupting chemicals <\/span><\/span><\/td><\/tr>
\u00a0<\/td>Excessive alcohol consumption<\/span><\/span><\/td>Persistent organic pollutant<\/span><\/span><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>

Table 1: Factors of chronic diseases <\/span><\/span><\/p>

How to measure it?<\/b><\/p>

Chronic inflammation is a silent killer. It has no obvious symptoms or indications until it interferes with and damages healthy cells. Measuring inflammation is not as simple as measuring our weight on the scale. It is multifactorial, necessitating expert interpretation. A single test result should not be used to diagnose the inflammation condition. However, as a \u201cguide\u201d, inflammation can be measured by observing inflammatory markers* such as erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), c-reactive protein (CRP) and plasma viscosity (PV) via a blood test. Always seek the advice of a professional when interpreting the results.<\/p>

Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR) test<\/p>