MANAGING

INFLAMMATION
The Bodys Potent Jekyll & Hyde

By Dr. Sarah Myhill ProHealth.com

The body has to be alert to the

possibility of any infection, to
which it responds with inflammation. If one looks at life from
the point of view of the immune
system, it has a very difficult
balancing act to make.
The body has to be alert to the possibility of any infection, to which it responds with inflammation. However,
inflammation is metabolically expensive and inherently destructive. It has to be, in order to kill infections by
bacteria, viruses, parasites or whatever. For example,
part of the immune defense involves a scorched earth
policy - tissue immediately around an area of infection
is destroyed so there is nothing for the invader to parasitize.
The mechanism by which the immune system kills
these infections is by firing free radicals at it. [Free radicals are very unstable molecules missing an electron
that attack & destabilize other molecules to steal an
electron.]
However, if the immune system fires too many free
radicals, then this friendly fire will damage self.
Therefore, for inflammation to be effective it must be
switched on, targeted, localized and then switched off.
This entails extremely complex immune responses,
so no wonder there is great potential for things to go
wrong.
Inflammation is also involved in the healing process.
Where there is damage by trauma, there will be dead
cells. Inflammation is necessary to clear away these
dead cells and lay down new tissues.
Inflammation is characterized by heat and redness
(heat alone is antiseptic), combined with swelling,
pain, and loss of function, which immobilizes the area
being attacked by the immune system. This is necessary because physical movement will tend to massage
the infection to other sites.

If one looks at life from the point of view of the immune system, it has a very difficult balancing act to
make.
Too little reaction and we die from infection;
Too much reaction is metabolically expensive and
damaging.
Indeed, inappropriately switched on, the immune system has the power to kill us within seconds - one example of this, of course, is anaphylaxis [a severe potentially life-threatening allergic reaction, e.g., to bee
venom]..)

What Causes
Inflammation?
Infection - any acute or chronic infection will result
in inflammation
Tissue damage for example, trauma, burn, fracture,
overuse of muscles, ligaments and joints
Auto-immunity [for example, rheumatoid arthritis,
type 1 diabetes]
Allergy
Chemicals and toxic insult

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 Radiation for example too much sun bathing will

give us red skin from ultraviolet light.

What Controls
Inflammation?
Vitamin D is Anti-Inflammatory

The reason is because sunshine with all its radiations

causes inflammation in the skin, so locally produced
vitamin D stops this local inflammation. It then diffuses to the rest of the body, causing a generalized anti-inflammatory effect.
The further away from the Equator one lives the greater ones risk of autoimmunity, cancer, allergy and arterial disease.

Adrenal Function

The adrenal gland produces cortisol, DHEA, adrenaline

and noradrenaline, all of which have profound effects
on the level of immunity. Adrenaline, for example, can
switch off anaphylaxis within a few second. Adrenal
function can be determined by doing an adrenal stress
profile. As we age the adrenal function declines and we
are more prone to inflammatory disorders.

Antioxidant Status

The immune system uses free radicals to kill bugs. If

these are not quickly mopped up by the antioxidant
system, then they go on to damage normal tissues. [Antioxidants neutralize free radicals because theyre able
to donate one of their own electrons but still remain
stable.]
Poor anti-oxidant status is a disease amplifying state
because then immune activity cannot be switched off.
This can be corrected by taking antioxidants.

Cell Damage

If there is damage of any sort the immune system will

be switched on in order to digest away the damaged
cells before they get infected. The level of cell damage
can be measured by doing a Cell-Free DNA test [profile of circulating DNA].

it is also caused by inflammation, which then causes

further cell damage - a typical vicious cycle of Chronic
Fatigue Syndrome.

Essential Fatty Acids

Having good levels of Omega 3 and 6 essential fatty

acids (EFAs) feeds into prostaglandins and prostacyclins and leukotrienes - which are essential messengers
within the immune system.
A low fat diet so beloved of the cholesterol can be reduced by diet school of thought will result in a pro-inflammatory tendency. High dose essential fatty acids
can be most helpful.

Sugar

Is directly pro-inflammatory because it raises insulin

levels and generates free radicals.

Toxic Load

Because this causes cell damage and produces free radicals. Examples are cigarette smoking, heavy metals,
pesticides, volatile organic compounds, surgical implants such as silicones.
If I do fat biopsies, almost invariably I find a range of
chemicals. These can be got rid of by detoxification.

Nitric Oxide

Nitric oxide (NO), a cell to cell communicator, is directly pro-inflammatory and drives the NO/ONOOcycle as described by Martin Pall [who believes this
inflammatory cycle drives CFS, fibromyalgia, and other syndromes, which he terms 10th Paradigm disorders].
Essentially, NO combines with superoxide (a major
free radical which is very damaging and mopped up by
superoxide dismutase) to form peroxynitirite. This may
explain why B-12 is so helpful, because it scavenges
peroxynitrite directly. These effects result in an up-regulation of the NMDA receptor - this is down regulated
by magnesium.
Inflammation is a central part of the ageing process the more inflammation, the more cell damage and the
faster we age.

There are lots of possible causes of cell damage, but

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What Switches
Inflammation On?
The major cause historically, of course, is infections.
Broadly speaking viruses produce a lymphocyte reaction, bacteria a neutrophil reaction, and parasites an eosinophil reaction. Physical causes include any sort of
trauma which could be a fracture, a burn, a wound or
ischemia from poor blood supply - all these issues can
result in tissue death.

Modern lifestyles
Modern Western man has got ahead (for the time-being!) of death by infection. However Western lifestyles
are now the major cause of inflammation.
Evolution intended humans to spend their lives living
in one place, eating the same local foods throughout
their lives, not travelling and meeting unfamiliar bacteria in other countries, nor being invaded by people from
abroad. Nowadays the immune system is brought face
to face with new foods it had not experienced whilst it
was being programmed in early life and is assailed by
a multiplicity of new bacteria and viruses.
Furthermore, modern Western lifestyles bring us into
contact with new chemicals including heavy metals, pesticides and volatile organic compounds, all of
which upset the normal processes of immune recognition. These are called adjuvants.
One example of this was revealed by a study in Japan
which showed how people living in the cities had a
higher rate of hay fever than people in the countryside
despite pollen counts being very much higher in the
countryside. The answer came from diesel particulates,
which stick on to grass pollen to make it more antigenic.

Vaccinations are an example of how

adjuvants work
Vaccinations are intended to program the immune system to recognize pathogenic bacteria and viruses. The
body is presented not with the real live bug, but with

either a dead form or an attenuated form. In order to

wake up the immune system so that it recognizes these
as a threat (which of course it isnt in reality), adjuvants are added. Many adjuvants are either mercury or
aluminum. Again this is an illustration of how heavy
metals may switch on the immune system.
Nowadays children are receiving so many vaccinations
that the toxic load of metals may be causing a toxic
problem in addition to the problem of immune activation.

The hygiene hypothesis has much

to commend it
Modern life is too clean. The immune system needs
constant training from soil bacteria, gut flora and gut
parasites. If it doesnt get this training, it starts to react
inappropriately to, for example, foods.
A vital part of the education of the immune system occurs within the first hour of life. The baby is born with
a sterile gut which accepts, immunologically speaking,
bacteria which are passed through mothers gut. The
babys gut should be inoculated at birth, and that gut
flora should persist for life.
Nowadays with Caesarean sections, sterilization of
bottle and teats, lack of breast feeding, use of antibiotics, etc., the babys immune system may not get this
essential programming.

Good digestion is essential to protect

against inflammation
Anything which causes a leaky gut will mean large
antigenically interesting [antibody-stimulating] mole-

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cules can get from the gut into the blood stream to possibly switch on allergies. Alcohol, drugs, gastroenteritis, poor digestion of foods, poisoning and so on can all
cause leaky guts.

Any foreign materials implanted in the body

may also switch on the immune system.
The best example is silicone implants, but surgical implants, especially those containing nickel, can potentially do this. Jewelry and piercing is a common cause
of metal allergies, often to nickel, but it can be to any
metal. Dental amalgam passes freely into the body and
can switch on sensitivity to mercury, nickel and silver.

Toxins turn on inflammation

We then come to the problem of pesticides and volatile organic compounds, all of which are very good at
switching on inflammation. These are ever present in
food, water and polluted air. 7

The Problems of
Switching on the
Immune System
If the immune system is switched on then it may
become activated against substances entirely inappropriately. This is the basis of allergy, in which reactions
to foods, pollens, animal furs, chemicals (Multiple
Chemical Sensitivities) are switched on as well as
autoimmunity, which can switch on reactions to whole
organs in the body (such as autoimmune thyroiditis) or
to cell organelles such as anti-DNA antibodies (found
in several autoimmune diseases but notably systemic
lupus erythematosis).
Indeed it is often impossible to tell the difference
between infection, allergy and auto-immune reactions.
The same inflammation is at work - it is just either
appropriate or inappropriate.

Herbal Treatments Which Help

Switch off Inflammation
Devils Claw

Curcumin (turmeric)
Flavonoids, carotenoids
Probably many others that I do not know of!

Nutritional Supplements Which

Help Switch off Inflammation
Vitamin D
Vitamin B12
Essential fatty acids
Anti-oxidant effect: vitamins A, C, E, magnesium,
zinc, copper, manganese, selenium, glutathione

Where to find
Inflammation Support
Supplements
For a wide selection of Vitamin D, Vitamin B, Curcumin, Devils Claw and other Immune and Inflammation supportive supplements including topical lotions
and oils visit ProHealth.com

More Information
For more information about M.E. & Chronic Fatigue
Syndrome, including diagnosis, testing, alternative
treatment options, news, research and more, visit
ProHealth.com/ME-CFS
____________
Dr. Myhill is a UK-based ME/CFS & fibromyalgia
specialist with a special interest in nutrition and preventive medicine.*
* This article is excerpted with kind permission from
Dr. Myhills newly redesigned patient-education website (DrMyhill.co.uk). Sarah Myhill Limited, Regis-

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tered in England and Wales: Reg. No. 4545198. For ME/

CFS patients, a special feature of Dr. Myhills site is her
free, constantly updated online book - Diagnosing and
Treating Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.
Note: This information has not been evaluated by the FDA. It
is generic and is not meant to prevent, diagnose, treat or cure
any condition, illness, or disease. It is very important that you
make no change in your healthcare plan or health support
regimen without researching and discussing it in collaboration with your professional healthcare team.

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