After an injury or an illness, the body needs to get itself back into ideal balance, called homeostasis, as quickly as possible. Your immune system sends out white blood cells and other immune cells to the injured area to mop up infections. Swelling occurs to contain any toxins. If you’ve cut your knee for example, the area will be hot, inflamed and swollen for a while. Unfortunately, there are auto-immune conditions that keep the body’s defences on high alert – in other words, the immune system starts misidentifying cells as ‘enemies’ and keeps on attacking them. When this happens, painful conditions like rheumatoid arthritis occur (here the immune system attacks the synovium, the thin cartilage lining around the joints). But the causes of rheumatoid arthritis are unknown.
It is known that stress – whether through injury, misalignments or psychological pressure – initiates the release of cortisol. At first this hormone acts as an anti-inflammatory, but prolonged cortisol exposure produces a cycle of inflammation which impacts the functioning of every aspect of your body, particularly the immune system.
So what can you do about chronic inflammation?
- Relieve pressure on joints – chiropractic adjustments involve the expert manipulation and mobilisation of joints. This helps to reduce or eliminate the compression of tissues, muscles and ligaments which cause microscopic injuries and contribute to inflammation.
- Take regular exercise – it probably feels like the last thing you want to do, but studies show that movement and load bearing exercises are key to managing conditions like rheumatoid arthritis and other chronic inflammatory conditions. Stronger muscles support your joints, weight bearing exercise promotes bone health and improving overall fitness prevents heart disease and diabetes. Walking is a great (free) weight bearing exercise, while swimming, water aerobics or cycling are low impact exercises and especially suitable for those with joint pain. Our physio can advise you.
- Improve your mood – de-stress yourself and look after your psychological health. That means getting out under the sky and into the fresh air for a walk every day, even if it’s raining. Set aside time to relax mentally for at least 10-20 minutes a day (especially if you combine that with meditation, self-hypnosis or mindfulness).
- Eat well and lose weight – choose leafy greens, fatty fish, olive oil, nuts and fruit, and avoid processed foods. Research is ongoing but there are promising indications that turmeric, lipoic acid and fish oil reduce inflammation. Take a high quality vitamin and mineral supplement – we sell these at Sundial.
So come and see us for a check up. You can book yourself in for an appointment or just ring the clinic. We’re always happy to see you.