Southwest Florida's Health and Wellness Magazine Health and Wellness Articles
By Nasser Razack, MD, JD
We’ve all heard of inflammation but what exactly is it? Inflammation is the response of our immune system to injury or infection. When it’s short-lived and targeted for specific purposes such as recovering from a cold, it’s a wonderful thing. However, long-term chronic inflammation can be deadly. That’s because long-term, chronic inflammation results in horrible diseases such as cancer, heart attack, stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, etc. Worst of all, chronic inflammation is not painful. Thus, the victims of chronic inflammation develop these deadly disease processes silently without any signs or symptoms.
For example, heart disease which includes stroke is associated with multiple risk factors, some of which include high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, smoking, and being overweight. We previously thought these risk factors led to the narrowing of blood vessels that supply oxygen to the heart and brain and that progressive constriction of these vessels resulted in heart attacks and stroke. However, more than half of all heart attacks occur in people with normal cholesterol levels. In addition to that, autopsy specimens from deceased heart attack victims demonstrate their vessels were not narrow enough to result in death. We now know that inflammation causes even minor plaques in vessels to erupt like miniature volcanoes, leading to the complete blockage of these blood vessels.
The problem is that inflammation in one part of the body results in inflammation everywhere. For example, inflammation that causes the narrowing of blood vessels doesn’t just occur in one organ such as the heart but rather throughout the entire body. When inflammation of blood vessels occurs in the heart, we call this a heart attack. When it occurs in the brain, we call this a stroke and when it occurs in the legs, we call this peripheral vascular disease. When it occurs in very small arteries of the brain, it can result in vascular dementia.
Whether it’s a heart attack, stroke, peripheral vascular disease or vascular dementia, it’s really the same disease process, namely inflammation. In addition to affecting blood vessels, inflammation also wreaks havoc on the brain. Dementia such as Alzheimer’s disease is also caused by brain inflammation. But in this case, inflammation not only affects the blood vessels of the brain but also the spaces between brain cells and the brain cells themselves. In fact, the parts of the brain more affected by Alzheimer’s disease have higher levels of inflammation. This is important because inflammation results in brain cell death. Brain cell death causes brain volume loss which eventually leads to loss of brain function.
Periodontitis, an inflammatory disease of the teeth and gums, is another example of how we can better understand inflammation. This inflammatory disease of the mouth also increases the risk of other inflammatory diseases such as heart attacks, stroke and Alzheimer’s disease. Twin studies demonstrate younger patients with severe periodontitis resulted in a fivefold increased risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. How can inflammation of the mouth be related to heart attack, stroke and Alzheimer’s disease? Well, inflammation exerts its effects on the body through cells called inflammatory cells. Once these cells are activated, they act like little tiny soldiers programmed to destroy anything that crosses their path. These inflammatory cells are localized in the mouth in periodontitis. However, activated inflammatory cells can travel throughout the entire body via the blood vessels. They can reach the brain and cause stroke or Alzheimer’s disease. They can also travel to the heart and cause a heart attack.
I’m sure all of this sounds quite depressing. But the good news is that if we fight inflammation in one part of the body, we fight inflammation everywhere! That’s because inflammation is the same central disease process no matter where it’s occurring. And the even better news is that we now have real hope in fighting inflammation.
There are incredible health-healing substances in nature called polyphenols. No doubt you’ve likely heard of some of these marvelous nutrients which are both strong anti-inflammatory agents and antioxidants. Among them is curcumin, which has a unique property that blocks the central regulator of inflammatory reactions within humans called nuclear transcription factor kappa beta. I know that’s a mouthful but all you need to know is that it pretty much blocks inflammation in its tracks. Curcumin has also been demonstrated to reduce the formation of beta-amyloid plaque in the brain which is associated with Alzheimer’s disease. In addition to curcumin, many other polyphenols have been proven to reduce the incidence of both stroke and heart disease. These polyphenols can also delay the onset of Alzheimer’s disease and thus reduce its incidence.
Dr. Nasser Razack, MD, JD, is a Neurointerventional Surgeon who specializes in the endovascular treatment of stroke. He sees the devastating effects of stroke on a daily basis. That’s precisely why he formulated Neurcumin® to reduce the effects of inflammation and prevent inflammatory related diseases like stroke, heart attacks and Alzheimer’s disease. Neurcumin® is an all-natural nutrient which in addition to curcumin, contains many other polyphenols and other natural agents uniquely formulated to fight inflammation.
To learn more about
Neurcumin® and the prevention of inflammatory diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, stroke and heart attacks, please visit Neurcumin.com.
You may also call 727-289-7139 or email us at info@neurcumin.com for more information.
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About Nasser Razack, MD, JD
Dr. Razack currently practices in Naples, Florida. He dedicates a significant portion of his practice to educating in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of stroke. He completed his medical training at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia. In addition to his medical practice, he currently serves as President of Raztec Health, LLC.
