Inflammation is a type of body’s immune response, a natural phenomenon that occurs during the body’s recovery process. Such acute inflammation is good inflammation that protects our body, but chronic inflammation is different. Chronic inflammation travels around the body through blood vessels and damages our body.
Inflammation is a type of body immune responseㅣSource: Clip Art Korea
Unlike acute inflammation, which naturally disappears when the wound heals, chronic inflammation constantly causes problems. It is easy to neglect because there are no obvious symptoms, but if inflammation persists, it can cause metabolic diseases such as diabetes or autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and asthma, so care is needed.
Chronic inflammation causes metabolic dysfunction by reducing cell activity, and is known to significantly increase the risk of developing diabetes by increasing insulin resistance. Recently, various inflammation-related indicators are used as factors to predict the onset and exacerbation of diabetes. Among the inflammatory indices, CRP (C-reactive protein) is considered the highest predictive index of chronic inflammation.
CRP inflammatory response test
CRP (C-reactive protein) is a type of protein made according to inflammation, and high levels in the body mean that there is inflammation in our body. “When there is an inflammatory response or tissue damage in the body, cytokines, mainly interleukin-6, stimulate hepatocytes to promote CRP production,” said Dr. Lee Wan-gu (Magnunsam Internal Medicine Clinic), a consultant at Haidak’s Endocrinology Department. It can also be used for diagnosis and follow-up of autoimmune diseases.” The CRP inflammatory response test is a type of blood test.
The normal level of CRP is about 0.5 to 1.0 mg/L. In case of acute inflammation, the level of CRP in the blood increases rapidly to 10 mg/L or more, and in case of chronic inflammation, the level is between 1 and 10 mg/L. Among chronic inflammation, between 1 and 3 mg/L is defined as a slightly dangerous condition, and more than 3 mg/L is defined as a serious condition.
Recently, diagnostic technology has been developed so that the amount of CRP can be measured more precisely than before. Director Lee Wan-koo said, “In the case of acute inflammation, the CRP level rises high and is easy to measure, but in the case of chronic inflammation, it is difficult to detect with a general CRP test because CRP exists at a very low concentration.” “For this purpose, a high-sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP) test with increased sensitivity has been developed and is being applied to clinical practice,” he added. Studies have been published showing that an elevated hs-CRP level increases the risk of future cardiovascular diseases such as stroke and myocardial infarction.
Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII)
Diet is one of the factors that affect inflammation in the body. The degree to which inflammation is induced when a particular food is consumed is quantified and is called the ‘Dietary Inflammation Index (DII)’. In other words, the higher the DII, the more inflammatory the food is.
As a result of a survey of 9,000 Koreans by the National Cancer Center, those who frequently eat foods high in DII have an increased risk of developing metabolic syndrome. A study conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) found similar results. Researchers have found that a high intake of inflammatory foods increases the risk of developing diabetes. For each 1-point increase in the DII index, the risk of diabetes increased by 13%.
In the case of diabetic patients, the higher the inflammatory index of the food consumed, the higher the severity of diabetes. According to the study, for every 1-point increase in the DII index, the risk of an increase in HbA1c level above 9% increased by 43%.
Inflammatory foodsㅣSource: Getty Image Bank
What foods cause inflammation?
Representative foods with high dietary inflammatory markers include red meat, high fructose corn syrup, and refined oils. Red meat, which is high in saturated fat, tends to increase levels of inflammation in the body. High fructose corn syrup or sugar promotes the secretion of cytokines, substances that activate intracellular inflammation. Refined oils made from soybeans, corn, etc. also cause inflammation. These oils contain high amounts of omega-6 fatty acids. Omega-6 fatty acids are necessary for the body, but too much can exacerbate inflammation. This is because hormones made from omega-6 fatty acids cause inflammation.
Help = Director Lee Wan-goo, counseling doctor at Haidak (endocrinology specialist at Malgeunsam Internal Medicine Clinic)
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