Health Conditions from A to Z

Inflammation

Inflammation refers to redness, swelling, pain, and/or heat in the body, due to tissue injury, infectious disease, or trauma from physical or chemical insult sources. It can occur in any part of the body, both internal or external.

What To Consider

Inflammation is actually a natural and potentially beneficial response of the body to factors that are irritating or damaging it. To effectively treat inflammation, you must first determine the underlying factors that are causing it.

Preventive and Self-Care Tips

Diet
Eat an organic, whole foods diet, with 50-75 percent of your total food intake being raw (uncooked) foods. In cases of chronic inflammation, a simple mono-diet for two to four days, consisting solely of fresh fruits and vegetables and plenty of filtered water, can be very helpful. Avoid all sugars, white flour, junk foods, and sodas, and increase your intake of garlic and plain, organic yogurt. In the morning and before bed, drink a glass of pure filtered water with one teaspoon of fresh squeezed lemon juice and one teaspoon of liquid chlorophyll. Fresh squeezed vegetable juices or green drinks and homemade soups containing many vegetables can also help, as can taking one teaspoon of organic honey once a day. Eliminate red meat and poultry skin, as well as full-fat dairy products.

Nutritional Supplementation
Useful nutrients for addressing inflammation include vitamin C with bioflavonoids, zinc, beta carotene, evening primrose oil, garlic capsules, vitamin A and E emulsions, silicea, mineral complex with calcium, and S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAMe), an amino acid compound.

Proteolytic enzymes taken away from meals are also effective, especially for severe or chronic inflammation.

Aromatherapy
Chamomile, lavender, frankincense, and/or myrrh are all useful essential oils.

Herbs
Chamomile, lemon balm, licorice, meadowsweet, St. John's wort, plantain, willow bark, and wild yam all have anti-inflammatory properties, as do sea cucumber and yarrow.

Homeopathy
Aconite, Belladonna, Ferrum phos., and Sulfur are useful homeopathic remedies.

Hydrotherapy
In the early stages of inflammation, place an ice bag over the inflamed area or immerse in ice water.

Juice Therapy
The juice of currents, black/red grapes, flaxseed oil added to combined vegetable juices can be helpful, as can fresh-squeezed pineapple juice.

Caution
If fever and painful joints occur, this may be a sign of an infectious disease that is spreading throughout the body. To be sure, seek immediate medical attention.

Caution

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