This article is going to teach you what you need to know when it comes to inflammation and what affects it can have on your brain function. But, firstly, you need to understand what brain inflammation is.
There are both good and bad types of inflammation; the good type is there to protect your body when it suffers an injury or is being attacked by a virus or infection. Inflammation is a perfectly natural reaction as it directs healing and nourishment to the affected areas.
Inflammation is also what controls the autoimmune which can then contribute to the destruction of bodily tissue and horrible symptoms. To ease these symptoms, you need to minimise the inflammation.
But what does inflammation have to do with the brain? It is incredibly important to be aware of the risks that inflammation has on the brain because it can affect brain function in a variety of ways such as brain fog, psychological disorders and even mood disorders.
Studies have shown that neurotransmitters have contributed to depression in a number of cases and that inflammation has been at the root of a huge amount of mental health issues. Even Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s have been linked to inflammatory problems. However, depression is still being treated with the same type of traditional medicine which can actually affect the neurotransmitter levels in the patient.
Types of Inflammation
You can either suffer from acute or chronic inflammation. Typically, acute inflammation is short-term and can be treated fairly easily, whereas chronic inflammation is more severe. What leads to someone suffering from chronic inflammation can be their diet, stress, environmental toxins, mould & pesticides and even living a sedentary lifestyle.
Brain Inflammation
The brain is protected by something called ‘BBB’ (Blood-Brain-Barrier) and its main job is to make sure that no pathogens or molecules get into the brain to cause cell damage or inflammation. The blood-brain-barrier also works at filtering through the vital nourishment that your brain needs.
When someone has inflammation in their body, this has been caused by a release of cytokines. Cytokines are a chemical messenger which works at regulating immunity and inflammation. Cytokines also send messages to specialised brain cells that assist in brain function. When someone suffers from chronic inflammation, there is a cycle of brain cell damage, diminished brain function and this will then cause the person to experience symptoms such as brain fog.
Some of the other symptoms someone can suffer from when they have brain inflammatory problems are:
- Depression
- Processing Difficulties
- Decreased Mental Speed
- Poor Ability to Focus
- Mood Disorders
What You Can Do
One of the most important things you can do to support your whole-body health is to live a healthy lifestyle, and this includes healthy eating. Your diet is so important when it comes to reducing the toxins you consume and helping inflammatory problems. By consuming anti-inflammatory foods in your diet, you can help protect yourself.
It is also important for your physical and mental health for you to remove any big factors in your life that cause you stress, as stress can have a significant role in inflammation and other health problems.
Lastly, with your healthy lifestyle, you should also do regular exercise. Not only is it beneficial for your health in other ways, but it will also increase circulation which will pump oxygen and nutrients into your brain which will then protect it against brain inflammation.
Home Test Kits
We offer our customers a range of home testing kits and two of these can test for how your neurotransmitters are doing and your inflammation.
The neurotransmitter test is a simple urine test that can be completed within your own home at a convenient time for you.
We can also offer you a test to measure and find out about the level of inflammation you have within your body. This test can also be completed in the comfort of your own home, at a convenient time for you.
