Podcast Summary
Supplement Trust, Salmon Quality, Inflammation: Choose supplement brands with expert collaboration and rigorous testing, opt for sustainably-sourced wild-caught salmon, and reduce inflammation through lifestyle changes
When it comes to choosing supplements, trust is crucial. Dr. Mark recommends Momentous, a brand that collaborates with leading experts and has a commitment to rigorous third-party testing. He personally uses their collagen and creatine products. For wild-caught salmon, quality matters. ButcherBox sources sustainably-harvested salmon and makes it a convenient option for consumers. Inflammation can be caused by various factors, including diet high in sugar and processed foods, inflammatory fats, lack of exercise, stress, and toxins. To reduce inflammation, consider making lifestyle changes such as reducing sugar intake, incorporating regular exercise, managing stress, and reducing exposure to toxins.
Chronic Inflammation: Chronic inflammation, caused by factors like diet, toxins, and imbalanced microbiome, can lead to numerous health issues including heart disease, cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's, and autoimmune diseases. Identifying and addressing the root causes is crucial for maintaining optimal health.
Inflammation, which is a natural response to injury or infection, has become a major health issue due to chronic, hidden inflammation caused by various factors such as diet, environmental toxins, and imbalanced microbiome. This silent inflammation can lead to numerous health problems including heart disease, cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's, and autoimmune diseases. From a functional medicine perspective, it's essential to identify and address the root causes of inflammation rather than just treating the symptoms with medications. Some common sources of inflammation include poor diet, toxins in food and household products, and latent infections. Cultivating a healthy gut microbiome through diet and supplements is crucial in reducing inflammation and improving overall health. Inflammation is a significant contributor to aging and rapid aging, making it essential to understand how to diagnose and deal with it to maintain optimal health.
Medications and inflammation: Some medications can cause harmful side effects and inflammation, which is a root cause of many diseases. An anti-inflammatory lifestyle can help reduce inflammation and improve overall health.
Not all medications are benign, and some, like aspirin and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), can cause harmful side effects such as bleeding and inflammation. Additionally, inflammation is a root cause of many diseases, including heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and Alzheimer's. Tests like C-reactive protein and immune age can help identify hidden inflammation. An anti-inflammatory lifestyle includes eating real, whole foods, getting regular exercise, practicing relaxation techniques, avoiding food sensitivities, and healing the gut. Medications like multivitamins, fish oil, and vitamin D can also help reduce inflammation. It's essential to consider the root causes of health issues and not just manage symptoms with medication.
Sleep and Inflammation: Sleeping with the Chili Pad can improve sleep quality, leading to better health and cognitive performance, while addressing inflammation through diet and lifestyle can reduce its impact on the body.
Getting a good night's sleep is crucial for overall health and well-being, and the Chili Pad by Sleep Me is a solution designed to help individuals achieve their optimal temperature for restful sleep. This bed-cooling system offers customization and automation, ensuring better sleep quality, which in turn leads to improved physical and cognitive performance, increased energy levels, and better health. Inflammation, a marker of which can be found through various tests such as C-reactive protein, is a significant health concern. It can be caused by various factors, including high blood sugar and excess belly fat. Newer tests and technologies, such as inflammatory signatures and high-resolution scans, are being developed to help diagnose and understand the root causes of inflammation. In the medical field, specialists use various diagnostic tools, such as endoscopies and stool tests, to detect inflammation in specific areas of the body. While there is ongoing research and development in this area, individuals can take steps to reduce inflammation by addressing factors such as diet and lifestyle.
Immune response to diet and lifestyle: Measuring inflammation markers alone may not fully explain immune system function. Diet and lifestyle can significantly impact the immune response, with the Western diet and lack of fiber contributing to chronic inflammation. Consuming healthy fats, particularly omega-3s, can help combat inflammation.
Our immune systems are constantly responding to various stressors, and measuring only the symptoms, such as inflammation markers, may not provide a complete understanding of the underlying causes. The immune system can be overreacting or underreacting, and testing its function through stressors could provide valuable information. The main drivers of chronic inflammation are our environment, dietary habits, and lifestyle. The Western diet, which is high in sugar, salt, processed foods, and low in fiber, can trigger an immune response similar to that of a germ. The lack of fiber in our diet can alter the gut microbiome, leading to inflammation. To combat this, we need to consume healthy fats, particularly omega-3s, which help resolve inflammation in the body. Our gut, where we interact with the outside world, is home to a significant portion of our immune system, making the health of our gut microbiome crucial.
Microbiome and Inflammation: A healthy microbiome is crucial for proper immune system development and function, while a dysbiotic microbiome can lead to chronic inflammation. Factors damaging the microbiome include poor diet, stress, lack of social connections, and environmental pollutants. Reducing exposure to these harmful factors can help prevent chronic inflammation and promote overall health.
The health of our microbiome, the community of bacteria and other microorganisms in our gut, plays a crucial role in our overall health and inflammation levels. A healthy microbiome is essential for the proper development of our immune system and helps train it to function effectively. Conversely, a dysbiotic microbiome, or an imbalance of good and bad bacteria, can lead to chronic inflammation. Factors that damage our microbiome include a poor diet lacking in fiber and other essential nutrients, stress, lack of social connections, and exposure to environmental pollutants, such as air and water pollution, food additives, and plastics. These exposures can disrupt the balance of our microbiome and lead to inflammation. Moreover, our genes are influenced by our exposures, and 95% of disease is caused by the exposome, not our genes. Therefore, focusing on reducing our exposure to harmful environmental factors is a key step in preventing chronic inflammation and promoting overall health.
Immunome and inflammation: The Immunome, which includes all the cells, proteins, and genes in our immune system, is being studied through advanced technologies and computational tools to discover new biomarkers for inflammation, leading to new targets for prevention and treatment.
Our modern environment exposes us to various toxins and stressors that contribute to inflammation, which can lead to cardiovascular disease, premature aging, and even death. These factors include environmental toxins like formaldehyde, social stresses, inflammatory foods, food additives, and other environmental toxins, including heavy metals. Our gut microbiome is also affected, leading to even worse inflammation. The concept of the immunome, which refers to all the cells, proteins, and genes in our immune system, can help us understand these complex interactions. The 1000 Immunomes Project, which lasted for 15 years and recently received $15 million in funding, has been studying the immunomes of individuals to discover new biomarkers for inflammation. Traditional biomarkers, such as CRP and sedimentation rate, are not very sensitive, and the field of medicine is now embracing technologies like transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics to measure thousands of proteins, genes, and metabolites in the blood. This convergence of systems biology, advanced technologies, and computational tools is opening up new possibilities for understanding the complex interactions in the body and identifying new targets for prevention and treatment.
Inflammatory Age Predictor: An inflammatory clock based on immune biomarkers can accurately predict an individual's age and identify those at risk for multi-morbidity, providing potential for preventative healthcare interventions.
Researchers have developed an inflammatory clock based on immune biomarkers that can accurately predict an individual's age and identify those at risk for developing multiple non-communicable diseases simultaneously, known as multi-morbidity. This inflammatory clock is a predictor of age-related diseases and can potentially help identify individuals who may benefit from interventions to prevent or manage these conditions. The clock is based on the immune system and inflammation as sources of data and can accurately predict age even after adjusting for chronological age. Additionally, individuals with higher inflammatory age are at increased risk for developing multi-morbidity, which is common in older adults and can lead to the need for multiple medications. The goal is to identify a biomarker from blood that can predict multiple diseases simultaneously, making it a valuable tool for preventative healthcare.