Biohacking: Inflammation

"We've long known that atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disease. In the absence of inflammation or injury to the endothelial cell, the cholesterol would never go through the arterial wall and it would never stay there."

Dr. Dwight Lundell, in Cholesterol Clarity, page 37 by Jimmy Moore, Eric Westman, MD.

"When we're talking about inflammation, I like to look at what's causing it. If the client's C-reactive protein levels are high, I want to look for the root cause of the inflammation and what's causing the damage. Things like smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, consuming trans fats and processed carbohydrates, having high blood sugar levels, chemical exposure, high blood pressure, and stress can all contribute to this. Everything on this list is very different than blaming inflammation on a high-fat diet, which is what many trusted professionals will point their finger at right away."

Cassie Bjork, RD, in Cholesterol Clarity, page 38 by Jimmy Moore, Eric Westman, MD.

"Elevated CRP can signal many different conditions, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, infection, and autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and inflammatory bowel disease. The chronic inflammation behind an elevated CRP level may also be influenced by genetics, a sedentary lifestyle, too much stress, and exposure to environmental toxins such as secondhand tobacco smoke. Diet has a huge impact, particularly one that contains a lot of refined, processed and manufactured foods."

Dr. Andrew Weil, M.D., in Elevated C-reactive Protein (CRP)

"There are now 34 large-scale prospective studies that have all come to the same conclusion: CRP is one of the most consistent risk stratifiers that we have. But it is important to think beyond CRP as a simple marker for high risk of disease. It also tells us something about the underlying biology."

"...patients with metabolic syndrome and high CRP have very high risk. Clearly, when the inflammatory mechanisms are engaged, metabolic syndrome patients do much worse"

"The patients with the very highest levels of hsCRP - 5 to 10, 10 to 20, or even greater than 20 mg/L—are, in fact, at the very highest risk."

"These data help to explain why those with periodontal disease, arthritis, and other systemic inflammatory disorders all have higher vascular risk. Perhaps inflammation from any cause has an adverse effect on the vascular endothelium."

"There are over 50 papers about the impact of exercise on inflammatory markers and event reduction ... Moreover, CRPs fell whether or not the patients actually lost weight. The exercise benefit was independent of weight loss."

Paul M. Ridker, MD, MPH, FACC, in C-Reactive Protein, Inflammation, and Cardiovascular Disease