Inflammation and athletes
On 10/20/09 the NY Times reported: "A few weeks ago, two runners in their 30s, a man and a woman, died during a half-marathon in San Jose, Calif. This weekend, three men ages 26, 36 and 65 died during the Detroit half marathon. The actual cause of their deaths is unknown at this time".
Over training can create severe inflammation, which can affect blood vessel linings and subsequently the heart. There are research studies that show a correlation between marathon running and increased blood markers, similar to those found in a very mild heart attack.
It is common for most exercise and sports activities to produce some level of inflammation. The harder and more intense the training the higher the level of inflammation. The immune system responds to the inflammation by producing the anti-inflammatory hormone cortisol.
Inflammation is a general immune response to any injury in the body.
Traumatic edema (an excessive amount of fluid in the interstitial spaces) accompanying inflammation occurs with conditions such as sprained ankles or injured knees.
Inflammation ultimately works to mend and strengthen muscles, making them more adaptable to more intense levels of activity.
Researchers know that a healthy inflammation response is important for maintaining the wellbeing of virtually every system in the body, including the cardiovascular, immune, digestive, and central nervous system.
On the other hand, chronic inflammation is at the root of nearly every modern disease on the rise today such as diabetes, auto-immune diseases, arthritis, depression plus others. Chronic inflammation can damage healthy areas in our bodies, such as blood vessel linings (as in atherosclerosis), pancreatic tissue (in diabetes),and joint tissue (in arthritis), gut mucosa (in lactose and gluten intolerance) Inflammation, due to hormone changes, is a particularly important issue for women in perimenopause and menopause.
How does one modulate the amount of inflammation so there is a healthy amount but doesn't cause problems.?
1. Edema/ acute inflammation associated with a sports trauma can be reduced by general massage strokes and Lymphatic Facilitation.
"(LF) opens the initial lymph vessels to stimulate edema uptake and then moves the fluid through the network of superficial and deep vessels for return to circulation General massage manages cardiovascular changes in the area. Improving the rate of edema removal could improve an injured athlete's rate of return to activity. LF techniques are simple enough for an athlete to do self-care." (Therapeutic Massage in Athletes by Pat Archer)
2. Anti inflammatory medicines are not the best, and in fact can be detrimental to one's health!
For many years people thought that NSAIDS (non steroidal anti inflammatories) (like Ibuprofen, Naproxin, Celebrex, Aspirin), (which are COX 1 and 2 drugs) and corticosteroids like Prednisone and antihistamines were great for reducing inflammation.
Now it has been discovered that those very drugs disrupt the production of prostaglandins, which are needed to regulate inflammation, and can cause long term risks to the body such as kidney damage, liver damage, and intestinal hemorrhage.
In the US 22,000 people who die each year from the use (not abuse) of these drugs (New England Journal Of Medicine, June 1999). The Cox 2's while first touted as being side effect free are now after killing 59,000 from heart attacks and strokes and making another 139,000 folks seriously ill, known to create cardiac and vascular inflammation.
For more information and details
http://www.totalityofbeing.com/FramelessPages/Articles/exercise_inflammation.html
http://www.womentowomen.com/inflammation/whatischronicinflammation.aspx
3. It is advisable to modulate inflammation with natural herbs, diet, and sleep
(7-9 hours per night) so that one can get the benefits of inflammation (stronger muscles) but not the chronic, post-exercise inflammation.
Here is a list of things you can do to cool inflammation:
Foods:
Increase your intake of omega-3 fatty acids by eating more fish - wild salmon is a great choice.
Take fish oil supplement.
Take flax oil.
Reduce intake of omega-6 fatty acids - instead use olive oil, coconut oil and occasionally canola.
Reduce the amount of land animal foods - animal products contain Arachidonic acid which is pro-inflammatory.
Eat for blood sugar control (minimal or no white powders-sugar, flour, etc). Avoid high insulin levels because they will increase inflammation.
Remove food sensitiveities/allergies from your diet.
Consume ginger and turmeric ( the yellow spice found in curries).
Eat a wide spectrum of fruits and vegetables.
Get your C-reactive protein ( CRP) level checked - It is an indicator of inflammatory activity in your body. A high CRP level is a better indicator of heart disease risk than high cholesterol.
Reduce stress:
Chronic stress can increase inflammation in the body. Exercise helps reduce stress and inflammation and blocks Arachidonic acid production.
Get massage to help reduce stress and thus inflammation.
