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Dr. Barry Sears: Is Inflammation the Silent Killer?

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CBN.com HORMONAL BALANCE = WELLNESS
Silent inflammation is a condition that occurs when the body's natural immune response goes awry. It can go undetected for years, continually assaulting the brain, heart and immune system. Dr. Spears says you could be at risk for this condition if you can answer yes to three or more of the following:

Are you 1) overweight, 2) taking cholesterol medication, 3) taking the birth control pill, 4) waking up feeling groggy, 5) constantly craving carbohydrates, 6) have brittle fingernails, or 7) feel constantly fatigued? "The day you start fighting silent inflammation is the day that you start to slow down the aging process - and all the chronic diseases that come with it," says Dr. Sears.

The true key to wellness lies in keeping a certain group of hormones, known as eicosanoids (eye-KAH-sah-noids), within a zone. These little known, almost mystical hormones are the guardians of your future. Keep them in balance, and your future is bright. Allow them to surge out of balance, and your future is bleak. Dr. Spears says he can make such a strong statement because eicosanoids control inflammation and that is becoming recognized as the underlying cause of many, if not all, chronic disease. By controlling the hormones that cause silent inflammation you will:

  • Help prevent heart disease and stoke
  • Help ward off cancer
  • Help reverse type 2 diabetes
  • Help prevent neurological disease (Alzheimer's, depression, attention deficit disorder, Parkinson's)
  • Help reduce autoimmune disease (rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis)
  • Help reduce screaming pain (fibromyalgia, migraines, chronic pain, arthritis, etc.)

Listed below are some of the powerful benefits you will gain by reducing silent inflammation:

  • Better health
  • Greater longevity
  • Reduce symptoms of chronic diseases
  • Improved emotional control
  • Greater mental acuity
  • Improved physical performance

THE OBESITY-DIABETES CONNECTION
Obesity is one of the biggest generators of silent inflammation. Since nearly two-thirds of Americans are now overweight, this means that the epidemic of silent inflammation is also out of control. By the same token, America's diabetes epidemic has grown by 33 percent in the last decade. These diseases are connected with a condition known as insulin resistance which occurs when your cells become less responsive to the actions of insulin, forcing your pancreas to continuously produce more insulin to drive glucose into cells. This excess insulin also increases the storage of body fat, which can eventually lead to a condition known as endothelial dysfunction. Dr. Sears says the cause of endothelial cell dysfunction is most likely silent inflammation. In the case of obesity, Dr. Sears suggests that silent inflammation may be the cause of insulin resistance.

Dr. Sears says in order to reduce excess body fat or reverse type 2 diabetes, you have to reduce silent inflammation. The most import tool you have for this is high-dose fish oil. When combined with a proper diet and exercise this supplement will help reverse the effects of silent inflammation. Dr. Barry Sears says "...food is not merely nourishment for the body; it's actually a powerful 'drug' that can return you to a state of wellness through better hormonal control."

Exercise can help ward off aging by reducing silent inflammation. It does this by alleviating insulin resistance, which in turn helps reduce visceral fat, the dangerous kind that collects on vital organs in your abdomen. Reduce the visceral fat, and you'll reduce the primary source of much of the silent inflammation in your body.

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