Reduce Your Inflammation and Improve Your Life

(Informative illustration below.)

It’s not widely understood that inflammation is the culprit behind a lot of physical misery, from joint pain to headaches. The much praised Cleveland Clinic has an excellent primer on inflammation.  The Life Extension Foundation also has an eye-opening article, that among other insights, speaks to how inflammation accelerates the aging process, as does this this article about inflammation as a precursor to aging.

Inflammation can happen when the immune system inappropriately triggers a false inflammatory response; meaning, there are no foreign substances to fight off and yet the body’s white blood cells and chemicals designed to protect us from infection and foreign substances (bacteria and viruses) go into overdrive for no good reason.  When this happens, the body’s normally protective immune system causes damage to its own tissues.

Because this happens so often, particularly in the elderly, the pharmaceutical industry has made many drugs to help, of course with the usual litany of side-effects.  The supplement industry also is in the game and have created some promising formulations that might help with reducing inflammation.

(Go here for more on inflammation supplement product information.  Then scroll down the left hand side of the screen and look for ” Inflammation” under “Product Categories”.)

Recently, I had a very compelling reason to find something to help ease inflammation.  I had injured my shoulder resulting in Adhesive Capsulitis, commonly called “Frozen Shoulder”.

In addition to tending to my debilitating ailment with acupuncture, intensive physical therapy and Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (“TENS”), I did some reading and listening and began using these with satisfactory results:

Glucosamine Chondroitin Extra Strength Is a potent combination of joint- supporting nutrients, formulated to help maintain healthy connective tissue and mobile joint function.   I don’t use the formula with MSM added because I want more MSM than it contains, and therefore take it separately.

ProEnzyme™ Helps support the inflammation response system by utilizing systemic oral enzymes which disrupts the inflammation process to promote healthy tissue function. ProEnzyme P™ stimulates macrophages and supports the inflammation response by helping the body to break up large pro-inflammatory immune complexes that have accumulated in the body.

MSM Sulfur is a component of bones, teeth, and collagen (the protein in connective tissue) and also helps you maintain a healthy inflammatory response in joint tissue.

Neptune Krill Oil, NKO This form of omega-3 is absorbed faster and more efficiently than that typically found in fish oil. Fish oil has multivariate benefits to the body, including aiding inflammation reduction.

Curcumin 95 (Turmeric) This has a long history of use in Ayurvedic (Indian) medicine for supporting a healthy inflammatory response by promoting healthy levels of histamine and cortisone.

Go here for a list of Product Categories on this site.

Supplement Disclaimer

Just as with the descriptive statements made at the various company sites that manufacture and/or sell the supplement products presented in this blog, none, or nearly none, of the potential benefits stated here have been evaluated by the FDA. Likewise none, or nearly none, of the products here can be represented to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Before engaging a supplement program, it always makes sense to get the advice of your health practitioner.

Related posts:

1. Soreness Ain’t Swell
2. Arthritis — Don’t Let It Slow You Down

Supplements reviewed here: Hyaluronic Acid, Glucosamine Chondroitin, Curcumin 95, ProEnzyme, and MSM.

[Scroll down for Arthritis supplements and Video exercises.]

THE DOCTORS say that I may have some arthritis in my left hip socket and right shoulder joint, perhaps the result of three pretty impressive accidents.

It’s not slowing me down — yet — as I still jog here and there, bike here and there, “do” yoga and weight lift.

Even if arthritis wasn’t an issue, I’d still use certain supplements touted to aide joint comfort and flexibility.  It’s no fun being immobile, or in pain.

Among the many supplements available for arthritis abatement (click on a product below and peruse the “Arthritis” category), these are my favorites:

Hyaluronic Acid with MSM Rich Carson, the Founder of ProHealth, telephoned me about this one.  He knows that I had been struggling with my shoulder and hip mobility, and after using this supplement himself for a couple months noticed joint pain alleviation.  When you take a lot of supplements, many with overlapping benefits, it can be hard to isolate which one is doing what, but suffice to say that my hip and shoulder joints have markedly improved since I began trying Hyaluronic Acid around mid-July 2009, about one month ago.

Glucosamine Chondroitin Extra Strength Big time potency with two of some of the most widely studied prescriptions for healthy joints.  I don’t use the formula with MSM added because I want more MSM than it contains and therefore take MSM separately.

Curcumin 95 Like a lot of the stuff I take, this one has synergistic effects — it does more than help with arthritis, such as assisting detoxification of the body.

ProEnzyme Enzymes are marvelous things.  The body wouldn’t work without the (millions, billions, trillions?) of biochemical processes that enzymes catalyze.  This one is particularly special because it’s systemic — it’s not only helps with digestion, as most of us consider the primary function of enzymes, but also works to control inflammation, the bane of arthritis suffers.

MSM Ahh, the wonders of sulfur; stinky (in nature) maybe, but it’s the stuff of skin, hair and nails — and, of course, joints.

Go here for a list of Product Categories.

A doctor shows some simple exercises for arthritic hands, legs and shoulders:

Search on YouTube for arthritis exercises specific to your problem.

Supplement Disclaimer

Just as with the descriptive statements made at the various company sites that manufacture and/or sell the supplement products presented in this blog, none, or nearly none, of the potential benefits stated here have been evaluated by the FDA. Likewise none, or nearly none, of the products here can be represented to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Before engaging a supplement program, it always makes sense to get the advice of your health practitioner.

Related posts:

1. Inflammation… the Bane of Joints
2. Watch: Aging… Let’s Slow it Down! (Barbara Walters)
3. Soreness Ain’t Swell