(An extract from my book ‘Basic Health Knowledge’)

(This is for information only. In case of illness please consult a qualified medical doctor)

The most important word in the health dictionary is inflammation. People need to know for their own sake, what this is, how it arises in the human body, what effect it has on our health, and how to reduce its bad effects.

Inflammation iswhere the body’s self-defence, the immune system goes into action when there is some damage that has occurred in or to the body. It is our major defence mechanism to protect the body from infection and disease.

This word ‘inflammation’ gives the feel of hotness, and that is what it is – a pinkish colour to any one or all of our internal organs.  For example, healthy lungs are whitish-grey in colour but the lungs of a chronic (=long term) asthmatic are a little pink. This is due to an allergic reaction due to a cause which results in inflammation. It is called an auto-immune response and in this case, is where the body’s own protective mechanisms are attacking the body by mistake!

Inflammation is healthy when it is used by the body for a short time but when prolonged, any long-term inflammation becomes harmful.

US medical and food researchers warn us that long term inflammation is a major factor, a root cause of human illness and premature death. Therefore, you may think that it is worth-while to take a big interest in inflammation, its causes and prevention because your life and happiness could depend on it at some time.

Causes of long-term inflammation.

Please note that the greatest cause of inflammation is due to what we eat, especially foods cooked in seed oils – cooking oils!! Heavily advertised cooking oils, touted as healthy, make us sick! That is the message the independent food and health experts based in the USA, tell us. Unprocessed oil from seeds is not harmful, but heavily processed seed oils are quite harmful!! These oils are all highly industrially processed with chemical additives. Manufacturers add chemicals to preserve the oil or to prevent the oil from going rancid, prevent fungus, etc. These industrially processed vegetable seed oils, e.g., oils made from sunflower seeds, canola nuts, etc., cause inflammation in us and should be avoided!!  But for businessmen it is economical and makes good business sense to use these cheap long-lasting oils in their restaurants and ‘tasty snack’ factories. Unfortunately, those salty crackers we love to snack on are cooked in these oils.

The same food experts warn us that inflammation also arises in us when we eat sugary, sweetened foods, starches and carbohydrates. See Dr Lustig’s book “Sugar, Pure white and Deadly”! Sugar is highly addictive, as well as being poisonous – but people with the pre-diabetes condition underestimate their serious situation. They are addicted and cannot change their eating habits. They continue on eating carbohydrates, when in fact they should be avoiding all causes of inflammation. They think the medical profession can come to their rescue. But this is not possible! They are labouring under a delusion! The untold truth is that there are no pharmaceuticals to reduce inflammation directly or decrease cell resistance to insulin.

So, inflammation and insulin resistance continue on, quietly doing their damage until people succumb to illness of one sort or another. Unfortunately, prolonged inflammation has become the new normal in modern society due to the food we eat.

The US doctors, Dr Robert Lustig, Dr Stan Ekberg, Dr Eric Berg DC., Dr Ken Berry, Dr Barbara O’Neill, Dr Suneel Dhand and many other medical doctors, give us good advice on how to stay healthy and fit. They warn us about hidden problems in our food, especially about consuming sugar and other carbohydrates as food. Even artificial sweeteners, advertised as harmless, such as Melitol, are strongly warned against. The honey merchants, the date merchants, the jaggery vendors all make special pleading that their products are safe and healthy.  But all sugars are strongly addictive poisons!!  Carbohydrates and starch turn to sugars very quickly in the body. Know that these foods cause inflammation and worse. But sadly, inflammation arises in the body, usually completely unknown to us, when we eat and drink our favourite commercially promoted food, and most unfortunately when we fry our food in industrially manufactured oils.

People must turn away from all the known causes of inflammation and eat better quality food – boiled oily fish, butter, lard, grilled meat and boiled vegetables. They must avoid food fried in vegetable oils.

US doctors and health researchers say that chronic (= long term) inflammation is the root cause of many illnesses and death: heart attacks, strokes (blood clots in the brain), kidney disease and type II diabetes, arthritis, etc. Even the trans-fatty acids found in margarine cause inflammation in humans. Also, arthritis in the arm and leg joints is attributed to inflammation of these joint. There are comments that inflammation is even attributed to a cause of cancer. After knowing this you may wish to learn more about the causes and cures of inflammation!

Parents feed sweets to their children, not realising that they start a sugar addiction for life in another person! We thereby turn young people to sugar addicts at an early age!  WOW! Responsible medical doctors all around the world are highly concerned about more and more young adults below the age of twenty, becoming pre-diabetic. These days there is an epidemic of pre-diabetes and even diabetes cases in juveniles.

Because sugar is a slow acting poison with no immediate negative effects, we tolerate it, usually to our grave!  No-one warns us about the dangers of sugar!

Inflammation: Arthritis and Joint Pain

The body does not wear out. The joints are not like mechanical devices. There is a system of constant renewal: as the old cartilage in our joints breaks down it is renewed in a healthy person at whatever age.

But after eating unsuitable food over time, joints do become damaged, the cartilage does break down due to lack of correct nourishment.

It is said that there are several causes for pain in the joints, given the name arthritis. It is suggested here that inflammation may be one of the main culprits to blame.

It is recommended for people with arthritis that sugar, carbohydrates, starches and processed seed oils are totally removed from their diet and are best replaced with meat or other sources of protein and vegetables.

But lined up against you are all the tea shops, hotels and cafés which display tempting chocolate cakes, cream cakes, fruit cakes, sponge cakes, éclairs, chocolate pyramid cakes, even Vienna rolls with real chocolate inside! To help all this go down, coffee served from machines has a little sugar added just to tweak or ‘rev-up’ your addiction to sugar! It pays off handsomely as cakes then become irresistible to people with pre diabetes! It all makes good business sense!

There is no intervention by the Sri Lankan medical authorities. Where do they stand in all this? It is not clear.

The forces of business, promoting sugar addiction, are lined up against you! How can you survive into old age?

SUGGESTION:

However, in the case of arthritis, by taking known anti-inflammatory vitamins, minerals and oils, the sufferer can reduce the effects of inflammation. Bone broth may prove helpful.

Given below are some well-known remedies thought to reduce the effects of chronic inflammation in arthritis:

Omega 3 Fish oils.

Omega 3 fish oils and cod liver oil are the best oils for humans to consume, many US doctors say.

Turmeric (curcumin)

A teaspoonful of Turmeric powder mixed with a little amount of crushed black peppers and with just a little olive oil to help with absorption can be prepared with yoghurt in a yoghurt cup. Have this three or four times a week.

Vitamin D3 (+ K2) and their co-factor Magnesium

This vitamin is a powerful agent for reducing inflammation and does other good things about the human system. Dr Eric Berg says the small doses of D3 normally recommended, are not effective. It does not work. He recommends doses of DK 20,000 IU a day or even more taken for a few weeks: this will bring the very best results. D3 and K2 also need to be taken in combination with Magnesium for best results. They all work together. (Note: IUs are very, very small! Thus, the large numbers quoted!)

Chocolate Powder.

Good, unadulterated chocolate has a very dark colour. This powder can be mixed with water and drunk directly. However, please note that milk destroys its good effects, so, no milk and of course, no sugar.

Cocoa powder obtained directly from a mill has the best benefits. Note that manufacturers destroy the medicinal value of cocoa during a process called the “Dutching” in order to improve the taste and hence, sales and profits.

Olive Oil

Genuine olive oil is very beneficial for humans, but fraudulent, diluted, blended brands are common making it difficult to recommend purchasing it.

Castor Oil

When using this oil for the first time it has to be used with caution. This is because some people have an allergy to Castor oil. Therefore, some testing is advised before use.

Apply this oil to affected joints and allow it to penetrate the joints. It is claimed to be very effective for easing inflammation of the joints.

Walnuts

These may be available in the market. Walnut oil is very helpful for humans.

NOTE:

This information has been taken from what medical and food professionals in the USA are saying, where food and human health have become burning issues.

by Priyantha Hettige