Why we need to get a grip on chronic inflammation

We healthcare practitioners owe it to both our clients and to humanity to ensure that we get a grip on the amount of chronic inflammation that is running through the systems of most of them. Because unless we manage to help them reign this in, I believe human beings will not stand a chance of maintaining their position as the dominant species on the planet. ?

You may think that sounds overly dramatic when those with access to power can destroy the earth at the push of a few buttons, or when debates about climate change are raging. But I am a firm believer we are further along on the road to implosion as a species, succumbing through disease and dysfunction, than we are through war and global warming.?

As we well know, inflammation is an essential part of the immune system and the natural healing process, but unchecked inflammation where it becomes chronic, where the responses do not revert to stasis, and where the inflammatory response kicks in systemically even before an injury occurs, is now the major contributor to the cause of every major condition out there. ?

Just look at the leading causes of death for 2021 : dementia, Alzheimer’s, ischaemic heart diseases, cerebrovascular diseases, and lung cancer. All share a common thread – an inflammatory response – and that is before we start to look at other conditions where underlying inflammation plays a role such as raging autoimmune conditions (currently rising between 3 and 9%), obesity, depression, fatty liver, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, IBD and so much more.??

Contributors to this storm include; stress, poor nutrition, toxic emotions, environmental and toxin loads, reliance on alcohol, caffeine and other stimulants, a rise in pathogenic activity, lack of exercise, poor sleep, and poor living, all of which are?inherent in our society.?

Ask yourself the question, how many times has a client or patient come to see you and their case presents some or all these factors as part of their case history? As a clinician, I have seen these in most patients and even in those who may “biohack” or be avid exercisers or athletes.?

Meanwhile, our health service is cracking under the load. The NHS’s own stats show that one in four GP appointments are for medically unexplained symptoms. GPs – if you can get to see one face-to-face – are doing a valiant job. But when the majority of appointments last less than 15 minutes ,?how can they be expected to interact, take a case history, interpret, and diagnose? The result is a sticking plaster approach that benefits only big pharma. ?

If we want to get on top of this silent killer, we must insist on looking under the tip of our client’s health iceberg to assess the ‘submerged’ 90% of what is going on. We have to look at all the intertwined systems that are at play and find the underlying cause?of their chronic inflammation. Because if we can do that, we have a much better chance of clinical success, both for ourselves as practitioners, but also, and more importantly, for our clients. ?

I am a firm believer that blood testing and interpretation is the quickest, easiest, and best way to identify the cause of chronic inflammation – and I do not mean blood testing whereby one simply looks at reference ranges and decides whether a client falls one side of the line and are classed as sick, or the other side where they are considered healthy. I mean with tests like the ones we offer with our bespoke interpretation and reporting tied in.??

FDX panels provide insight through several inflammatory biomarkers including CRP, homocysteine, fibrinogen, hs-CRP, ESR, ferritin and albumin to name a few, and we gain further insights into the inflammatory process by looking at these in combination with?other markers such as blood cell differentials, indices such as oxidative stress, and the index scores of up 14 body systems. This level of detail allows us as clinicians to then make more targeted recommendations to our clients. And by being more targeted, we can be surer that?our recommendations will produce positive results.??

Now, I know what you are thinking: “He would say that, wouldn’t he?” And it's true, I unashamedly have a passionate interest in FunctionalDX, but that is because I know that we provide the best functional testing you or your clients can buy. ?

The signs of chronic inflammation are quite literally in the blood, so if you want to get to the bottom of a client’s inflammatory response, where else would you want to start to look??

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At FunctionalDX we feel passionate about helping our clinicians take on their clients’ chronic inflammation load. It’s why we’re involved in two events on the subject in November alone.?

November 12th, 2022?– New Approaches for Pain, Inflammation and Immunity??

This day of lectures will focus on powerful, non-invasive, gentle and effective interventions to support recovery for clients struggling with inflammation, pain or autoimmunity. At the event, you will learn how to use fatty acids, microbes, enzymes and vagal stimulation for whole body inflammation relief with Microbiome Labs Founder, Research Microbiologist and pioneer of the microbiome space Kiran Krishnan PhD, fellow Microbiome Labs co-founder Dr Tom Bayne, Head of Enzyme Science Clinical Advisory Board Dr Mark Tager M.D, and Leyla El Moudden, mANP.?

Date and time:?Saturday, November 12th, 2022, 10:00 – 17:30 GMT?

Location:?25 Percy Circus London WC1X 9EU?

Cost:?￡55 – use the code FUNCTIONALDX at checkout to get ￡40 off?

Book here ?

November 22nd, 2022?– Using Functional Labs to Dig Deeper into Autoimmunity: A Case Study?

I will be joining FM practitioner Jo Gamble and NutriAdvanced senior nutritionist Sarah Sharpe for this webinar that will help join the dots between functional testing and personalising a protocol for your autoimmune clients. Jo will be using a real-life case study from her busy clinic to show how the FDX Ultra panel allows clinicians to make targeted therapeutic decisions with confidence and efficiency. She will demonstrate how to choose the most appropriate functional tests in relation to autoimmune conditions and what they can tell us about blood sugar imbalance, immune dysfunction, inflammation, gut dysbiosis and high cholesterol. ??

Date and time:?Tuesday November 22nd, 18:30 – 20:00 GMT?

Location:?Online?

Cost:?Free?

Book here ?