Inflammation – Not Shutting Off Correctly
Stop the Burn: Addressing the True Sources of Inflammation
The immune system targets microbial invaders with chemical flame throwers. Viruses and bacteria get burned and drive away, but surrounding tissue sometimes gets scorched. In short term infections this damage can heal, but with chronic infections our flame throwers often won’t turn off. When this happens, your body tissues literally overheat.
While you don’t see any flames, you feel the heat. Joints ache. Extremities swell. Skin reddens and itches. Brains grow sluggish and sometimes hurt. Guts pitch fits making eating barely tolerable.
Answers
Conventional medicine begins and ends with sending in pharmaceutical firefighters. Flames are lessened, but without identifying the arsons behind the fires, smoldering hot embers continue low grade damage over time.
Functional medicine begins with more natural firefighters with fewer side effects and seeks to remove sources of the flames. This starts with evaluating dietary contributors to excess inflammation and looking for sources of toxins which throw more fuel on the fire.
From there, work presses into identifying the original fire-starter The arsons beyond infections includes chronic toxicity, poor nutrition, intestinal dysbiosis, or autoimmune processes stirring up trouble.
Methods
Between a comprehensive history and advanced laboratory analysis, we can go beyond labels and provide explanations.
Antibodies may point towards Lyme, mycoplasma, EBV, or other microbes. Blood or urine tests may indicate metal toxins, synthetic toxins, or natural environmental toxins are fanning the flames. Stool tests may reveal bacterial or fungal culprits.
Hope
With a clearer picture, a program targeting the arsons and the fire moves past the simple firefighter approach to a more comprehensive root cause long term recovery. A healthy immune system— absent unnecessary inflammation — promotes our patient’s healthier more abundant life.
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Sanctuary Functional Medicine, under the direction of Dr Eric Potter, IFMCP MD, provides functional medicine services to Nashville, Middle Tennessee and beyond. We frequently treat patients from Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Ohio, Indiana, and more... offering the hope of healthier more abundant lives to those with chronic illness.
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