Inflammation is a natural part of your body’s defense mechanism. First, the immune system recognizes and removes harmful and foreign stimuli. Then, it begins the healing process.
However, the immune system often goes rogue and silently damages healthy tissue and organs. The damage goes undetected for years, destroying nerve tissue, scarring, and damaging the mitochondria.
The damage can ultimately result in peripheral neuropathy or worsen neuropathy symptoms.
What is Inflammation?
There are two types of inflammation: acute and chronic.
Acute inflammation occurs when trauma, microbial invasion, or hazardous or toxic compounds damage tissue. It starts rapidly and lasts between a few days and a couple of weeks.
Acute Inflammation
Acute inflammation has a distinct start and stopping point.
For example, burning yourself with a hot iron immediately causes inflammation. You experience redness, swelling, and pain in the burned area. The inflammation is part of the healing process and resolves within one to two weeks.
Chronic Inflammation
On the other hand, chronic inflammation does not have a stopping point. It is long-term, lasting several months or years. The extent of the damage caused by chronic inflammation varies depending on the body’s ability to overcome it; however, chronic inflammation doesn’t usually dissipate or recede, making it difficult for the body to get ahead of the damage.
Chronic inflammation is silent because the symptoms are not apparent until substantial damage to the tissue occurs. Most damage is to the organ systems and cells, leading to nerve damage and degeneration.
Causes of Chronic Inflammation
The top three causes of inflammation, sugar, starch, and processed foods, can drive inflammation through the roof, especially high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which most Americans regularly consume.
Sugar, Starch, and Processed Foods
Most people do not realize they consume high fructose corn syrup everyday in common products such as:
- Soda
- Sport drinks
- Energy drinks
- Sweetened juices
- Sweet teas
- Flavored waters
- Cakes
- Cookies
- Pies
- Donuts
- Granola bars
- Other snack foods
- Breakfast cereals
- Sweetened yogurts
- Candies
- Fast food
- Bread
- Crackers
- Barbecue sauce
- Salad dressings
- Ketchup
- Ice cream
- Popsicles
- Pancake syrup
- Fruit preserves and jams
- Applesauce
These are only a few of many products that contain high fructose corn syrup.
The inflammation from the foods above is enough to cause nerve damage to the peripheral and central nervous system.
The US is the biggest consumer of sugar. The average American eats 152 pounds of sugar yearly. The inflammation can light your nerves like a Christmas tree, it also causes a slow and insidious death. The insurgence of diet-related diseases like heart disease, stroke, and type-2 diabetes likely stems from elevated sugar intake.
Processed Flours
Overconsumption of processed flour also causes chronic inflammation. In the US, the average person consumes 132 pounds of flour annually. China is the only country to surpass the US in flour consumption.
Refined Oils
Americans consume large amounts of refined oils, such as canola, corn, vegetable, and sunflower oil, and trans fats. Better choices would include olive oil, ghee, or coconut oil.
Inactivity
More than 60% of US adults do not engage in the recommended amount of activity, and 25% are inactive.
Moderate exercise is a potent anti-inflammatory. Exercises like yoga, swimming, resistance training, or aerobic activities like power walking, biking, or running reduce inflammation in the body.
Recent studies show that 20-minute exercise sessions boost the immune system and immediately have an anti-inflammatory response on cells.
Stress
Chronic stress raises and keeps cortisol levels elevated, resulting in large amounts of inflammation. The effects of stress affects every cell in the body.
Toxins
Pesticides, heavy metals, petrochemicals, chemicals found in personal care, and household cleaning products all contribute to inflammation.
Environmental Allergies
Environmental allergies, such as pollen, mold, dust, and others, drive inflammation. Texas is one of the worst places for allergy sufferers because of its warm climate, which allows grass or weed pollens and mold almost all year.
Poor Gut Microbiome
One of the largest causative factors of chronic inflammation is a poor gut microbiome. Most people have an unbalanced microbiome due to a poor diet and lack of fiber.
How Chronic Inflammation Affects the Nervous System
Chronic inflammation is a leading cause of many diseases, such as heart disease, inflammatory bowel diseases like Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis, autoimmune disease, asthma, allergies, and cancer. Many people and even doctors fail to correlate chronic inflammation with nerve damage.
For instance, a common form of peripheral neuropathy is Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (CIDP). With this condition, the immune system attacks the myelin sheath, the protective coating around the nerves.
According to JohnHopkinsMedicine.org,
“CIDP occurs when the body’s immune system attacks the myelin sheaths around nerve cells, BUT exactly what triggers this is unclear. Unlike Guillain-Barre syndrome, there is usually no infection preceding CIDP. There does not seem to be a genetic link to CIDP.”
While many doctors say that the cause of CIDP remains unknown, the cause is spelled out in the name: chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy.
Chronic inflammation is the driving force in many diseases, including autoimmune diseases. In cases of CIDP, the starting point is to stop the cycle of chronic inflammation.
Pro-inflammatory chemicals cause many different types of peripheral neuropathy. Inflammation can cause peripheral neuropathy, worsen it, and intensify the symptoms.
Dr. Coppola and I always emphasize the importance of a healthy diet because bad diets often cause chronic inflammation.
Furthermore, inflammation also affects the central nervous system, even being a cause of Alzheimer’s.
Ways to Reduce Inflammation Naturally
Lowering stress is the fastest way to slow inflammation. While it is impossible to avoid stress, you can develop habits and behaviors that reduce your cortisol levels and lower the stress in the body.
Stop Watching the News
America has become a nation of news junkies. There is nothing healthy about constantly watching the news.
Incorporate Stress Reducing Behaviors
Incorporate behaviors like deep breathing exercises, yoga, meditation, exercise, and massages. You can also take time each day to engage in your favorite hobby or craft, but it has to be a daily practice to achieve a therapeutic effect.
Silent Meditation
You can also take 5 minutes a day to sit quietly —no TV, radio, or noise. Focus on one phrase over and over in your mind: “Thank you, my strong body, for the healing that’s taking place.” Do this daily and expand the time by a minute every few days.
You will feel refreshed and walk with a lighter spirit.
While there are many more ways to lower inflammation, these are simple methods to get you started. Inflammation is a relentless storm, but you can squelch the flames and end the vicious cycle of peripheral neuropathy.
Struggling with Neuropathy?
Dr. Coppola and Dr. Monteiro’s dedication to combating neuropathy is deeply personal, stemming from Dr. Monteiro’s experience with her mother’s severe chemo-induced neuropathy. This personal journey fueled their commitment to develop a systematic, drug-free approach to reversing neuropathy.
They founded the San Antonio Neuropathy Center, where they’ve successfully treated over 18,000 patients over the past two decades. Their acclaimed book, “Defeat Neuropathy Now in Spite of Your Doctor,” along with their neuropathy product line, stands as a testament to their expertise and innovative solutions.
Recognized as leading neuropathy specialists in America, Dr. Coppola and Dr. Monteiro offer a beacon of hope for those diagnosed with this challenging condition. If you or a loved one is seeking relief from neuropathy, reach out to us at 844 400-0101 or email us through our contact page – Click here.
Your path to healing can start today.
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