What is inflammation and how can you prevent it for a healthier life?
There is much discussion these days about inflammation and its relationship to various diseases; but what exactly is inflammation and what role does it play in our lives? Here we will explain the difference between the inflammatory process and chronic inflammation.
What is inflammation?
Inflammation is part of the body's natural response to protect itself from infection or injury, chemical agents, or radiation. It is a process in which the immune system recognizes and eliminates pathogens and harmful effects to initiate healing.
During the inflammatory process, blood flow and permeability increase through the blood capillaries, allowing large molecules, such as cytokines, leukocytes, and circulating antibodies in the bloodstream, to cross the endothelial wall and reach the affected tissue. This results in the characteristic redness, swelling, heat, and pain of inflammation. In this sense, inflammation is necessary to combat the attack of a foreign agent on the body. However, since the inflammatory process involves an immunological process for the elimination of pathogens and toxins and the repair of damaged tissue, it must occur biochemically in an orderly and controlled manner to achieve the body's restoration. Once the healing process is complete, the inflammatory process typically ends.
What is Chronic Inflammation (CI)?
When the inflammatory response develops uncontrollably and does not end when the causes that cause it cease, lasting for long periods, it produces what is known as Chronic Inflammation (CI).
Heart failure can be caused by chronic infections, obesity, or abnormal immune responses. Heart failure is a condition that damages DNA and triggers various pathologies, including cancer.
Diseases associated with chronic inflammation
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is known to play a central role in the development of some of the most challenging diseases of our time, including cardiovascular disease, rheumatoid arthritis , cancer, heart disease, metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, asthma, allergies, obstructive pulmonary disease (OPD), chronic kidney disease (CKD), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), multiple sclerosis, chronic peptic ulcer, systemic lupus erythematosus, periodontitis, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, active hepatitis, and even Alzheimer's disease, among others. Because of this, people with chronic inflammatory processes have a higher risk of developing various diseases, including cancer.
What causes chronic inflammation?
Intensive studies are underway to understand the complex biochemical mechanisms that lead to heart failure (HF), which triggers a wide variety of diseases. Currently, the World Health Organization (WHO) classifies diseases stemming from HF as the greatest threat to human health and the leading cause of death worldwide. Furthermore, statistics indicate that the prevalence of HF-related diseases will increase globally over the next 30 years. Worldwide, three out of every five people die from chronic inflammatory diseases such as heart attacks, cancer, diabetes, metabolic disorders, cardiovascular disease, arthritis, allergies, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), among others. Risk factors that can trigger HF include:
- Obesity and oxidative stress : Adipose tissue produces cytokines and other inflammatory mediators. Metabolic syndrome has been found to be related to body mass index, which, in turn, is proportional to the amount of pro-inflammatory cytokines secreted. Thus, being overweight keeps the body in a state of inflammation.
- Aging : The production of inflammatory molecules increases with age, possibly due to the accumulation of free radicals and increased body fat.
- Low levels of sex hormones : Sex hormones such as estrogen and testosterone have been found to suppress the production of several pro-inflammatory markers. Maintaining healthy hormone levels in the body helps reduce the risk of inflammatory diseases.
- Chronic infections : A major factor associated with infectious anemia is infections that do not clear up. The prolonged presence of pathogens such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis, fungi, viruses, bacteria, protozoa, and other parasites in the body can weaken the host's defenses.
- Lifestyle : Physical and emotional stress and sleep disorders lead to the release of inflammatory cytokines. Cigarette smoking is another risk factor associated with elevated inflammatory molecules.
- Mood : Chronic stress is associated with changes in the activity of immune cell genes, and there is evidence showing a relationship between depression and increased blood levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), which increases in response to inflammation.
- Imbalances in the intestinal microflora : Imbalances in the intestinal microflora can cause inflammation and contribute to the development of arthritis, depression, and neurological diseases.
- Exposure to pollutants : Environmental toxins that cannot be eliminated by the body have been identified as causative agents of inflammation. Several studies show a relationship between greater exposure to air pollution and higher levels of CRP and IL-6 (a pro-inflammatory cytokine).
- Diet . A diet high in saturated fats ( trans fats), and high intake of carbohydrates such as refined sugar and other sweeteners are factors associated with increased production of pro-inflammatory molecules.
References
- InformedHealth.org. Cologne, Germany: Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG); 2006-. What is an inflammation? 2010 Nov 23 [Updated 2018 Feb 22]. Available on the Internet: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK279298/
- Pahwa R, Jialal I. Chronic Inflammation. [Updated 2019 Jun 4]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2019 Jan-. Available on the Internet: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK493173/
- Straub RH et al. Chronic inflammatory systemic diseases. An evolutionary trade-off between acutely beneficial but chronically harmful programs. Evol Med Public Health . 2016; 2016(1): 37–51.
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