Ronald Grisanti D.C., D.A.B.C.O., DACBN, MS, CFMP
What does the medical peer reviewed literature say may be at the root of the following diseases:
- Metabolic Syndrome/Insulin Resistance/Diabetes
- Cardiovascular Disease
- Cancer
- Obesity
- Depression
- Autoimmune Disease
- Neurodegenerative disease (Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease)
- Osteoporosis
- Immunosenescence (the progressive decline in immune function with increasing age)
The Answer is:
INFLAMMATION
According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), about 67 percent of the world's population—that's three out of every five people—will DIE from a disease related to chronic inflammation.
Most doctors don't test for it. That is sad considering inflammation is commonly the driving force behind almost EVERY chronic condition you can think of… including multiple sclerosis (MS), heart disease, and cancer.
I want everyone to know that a few simple tests can tell you a whole lot about your level of inflammation and your overall health.
Chronic inflammation is the “silent” condition associated with almost every serious medical condition on the planet.
Chronic Systemic Inflammation is not like the typical acute inflammation that one can easily identify with pain and sometimes swelling.
Chronic Inflammation is commonly a silent disease that slowly destroys your health
Again considering most doctors do not test for chronic inflammation, you may not even realize you suffer from it.
Some signs of inflammation can turn up in the blood years—or even DECADES—before suffering one of the above diseases
On the flip side, we know that reducing inflammation can in fact improve the clinical outcomes of the above diseases.
The dangers of inflammation are vast. And reining it in are of utmost importance for overall health.
So, let's look at how we can measure it (and keep track of it)—along with how we can fix it.
How to Test for Inflammation
There are three blood tests I recommend to gauge your overall inflammation levels.
The first is for C-reactive protein (CRP), an inflammatory protein produced by your liver. Levels tend to rise in response to inflammation.
In general, CRP scores are categorized accordingly:
- Less than 1.0 = Low risk
- 1.0-2.9 = Intermediate risk
- Greater than 3.0 = High risk
Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR). This test measures how quickly red blood cells settle into the bottom of a test tube. I like to see the ESR below 15.
The third test you should ask for is a fibrinogen blood test.
Fibrinogen is a sticky protein that promotes blood clots and affects blood viscosity (or “thickness”). And it's an acute phase reactant that will elevate with inflammation. I like to see a number below 300—anything higher points to inflammation.
The following are additional labs I commonly order to identify the inflammation load of a patient.
- Myeloperoxidase (MPO)
- Interleukin 6 (IL-6)
- Tumor Necrosis Factor
- Red Blood Cell Distribution width (RDW)- (optimal is 11.5- 14.4)
- Uric Acid- (optimal is <5.5)
Potential Causes of Inflammation
- Chronic Infections
- Physical Inactivity
- Obesity
- Gut Dysbiosis
- Low Nutrient Dense Diet
- Chronic Stress
- Disturbed Sleep
- Environmental Toxins (Chemicals, Heavy Metals and Mycotoxins)
Dr. Grisanti's Comments:
The one question likely on everybody's mind is how do you reduce the onslaught of systemic inflammation destroying the body leading to the above diseases?
The answer unfortunately is not as easy as take this or that.
The answer lies in carefully assessing the possible root causes and treating them appropriately. There lies the solution to reversing and in many cases halting the disease process of most of the listing diseases above.
I personally have seen outstanding results when the underlining cause(s) have been identified and developing a treatment protocol to turn the tide of XYZ disease.
