How to Treat Inflammation with Functional Medicine?

Inflammation is said to be the root cause of many problems. But what exactly is it? It is a vital part of the immune system's response to any injury or infection. It signals the body to repair damaged tissues and protect the body against bacteria and viruses. The infection grows in the absence of inflammation, and wounds become bigger (pus and more) than imagined. But if the inflammation goes on for too long or response occurs in places not needed, it can become a problem. It can be linked to certain heart diseases, stroke, and autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis or lupus.

There are two types of inflammation – acute and chronic. In acute inflammation, your injured area becomes red and swollen and is painful around the joints and tissues. When you are injured or cut yourself, white blood cells surround the wounded area to protect the area. It is more like your body speeds up the process of healing the injury. Meanwhile, chronic inflammation takes long because the body is consistently under attack, and the immune system keeps fighting it. Sometimes, white blood cells end up attacking the healthy tissues too.

Research suggests chronic inflammation is associated with heart disease, cancer, arthritis, diabetes, and bowel diseases. How do you know if you have chronic inflammation? Some signs and symptoms to look out for include:

· Fatigue

· Pain

· Inattention

· Cognitive decline

· Brain fog

· Joint pain

Functional Medicine Approach

We look at the patient's complete health history and symptoms to identify the root cause of the problem. We usually spend a reasonable amount of time understanding and collecting all the necessary information about complete health. We want to know everything, such as your eating habits, sleeping patterns, exercise routines, stress factors, relationships, and emotional health. After that, perform physical examination and order tests to determine food allergies and sensitivities, gluten intolerance, and perform comprehensive stool analysis. Also, look for good and bad bacteria, yeast including any nutritional deficiencies. After thoroughly assessing the patient's overall health, we create a treatment plan based on our analysis, including prescriptions, supplements, or other therapies. We track progress and make any necessary changes to how the patient responds to the treatment. The changes may be ongoing as each individual responds to the treatment depending on their conditions.

To learn more about how we can help treat your condition, you may contact Body Love Cafe at 925.788.6300.