I’m not going to pull you in by saying that what I’m offering you today is going to be simple, because it’s really not.  Health is not easy, and I’m not going to try to hook you into this email, or any of my emails by telling you that gaining and maintaining your health is a simple process.  It takes a commitment on your part to make regular, everyday choices that affect how you feel.  Everything that I write in my posts is helpful, and if you just follow one of the things I suggest, you will see positive changes….

However, today, I’m going to introduce a very big topic that takes effort and commitment on your part.  But, if you put into practice these principals and make them a habit, you will, most likely, feel a positive improvement in your health.

I have an entire 5 week course devoted to decreasing inflammation, but I’m going to give you the abbreviated version here in this email. I whole-heartedly feel that this is the biggest key to health!

Inflammation

What is this and why is it important to your health and vitality?

It’s your body’s response to chemical, physical and emotional triggers that sets your immune system off.  It works really well on a daily basis fighting bugs that you come into contact with. It goes into overdrive when you are exposed to a big blast of bad bugs, pollution or chemicals or injure yourself.  It also responds to overeating, stress, and injuries.  When you are constantly exposed to one of the above-mentioned factors, it stresses your immune system, which results in chronic inflammation.

How is this affecting your health?

                    
When you have constant exposure to chemical toxicity (from food, air, paint, mold) your immune system eventually goes into overdrive, resulting in chronic inflammation and tires out. In our environment, our immune systems are working 24 hours a day 7 days a week without a break.  This leads to dysfunction and your system not being able to do its’ job correctly.  It’s supposed to reduce inflammation and pain when it’s working well.

When the inflammatory cycle is out of balance, we find that people can experience some of the following:

• Pain either in joints, muscles, or anywhere in your body
• Weight-gain
• Inflammation and swelling throughout your body
• Fatigue
• Organ dysfunction
• Digestive issues such as Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Ulcerative Colitis, diarrhea, constipation
• Auto-immune dysfunction
• Skin problems such as eczema, rashes, itching
• Chronic colds and flus

What you can do to reduce inflammation, allow your body to rest and heal, and reset your immune system…..almost immediately…….

• Add anti-inflammatory foods into your diet.

  • There are so many foods that help to heal and reduce inflammation.  Foods like chard, spinach, blueberries, ginger, celery and cucumber are some examples.  See my post on green smoothies for more information on this.

• Reduce or eliminate foods that result in inflammation.

  • Wheat, dairy, sugar, red meat, eggs, and chocolate are some of the top inflammatory foods. Eliminating 1 or all of these foods can make a big difference in your symptoms. If you are going to pick one food to start with, I would recommend that it be wheat. Click here for more information from my past post on gluten.

• Practice Long Deep Breathing 3-11 minutes per day.

  • Slowing down and lengthening the time of your breath reduces mental stress, increases oxygen to your cells, and detoxifies your lungs… all leading to a reduction in inflammation. For instructions, click here for my instructional video.
• Practice an anti-inflammatory lifestyle for 1 week. I love this book I found called The Anti-Inflammatory Diet and Action Plan!  My daughter’s teacher turned me on to it.  It’s got beautiful pictures, goes into detailed explanation of foods, why they are inflammatory or anti-inflammatory, and help you create an action plan that works with your lifestyle. If you’d like to dive deeper into finding some possible help with improving health.

My Challenge to You:

Pick 1 of the 3 above suggestions and commit to practicing them everyday for 10 days.

Make a journal for yourself of your experiences.  Are you feeling more energy? Less energy? How is your sleep? Any change in your digestion? Mood? Appetite? Make notes of some of these things so that you can get a clear idea of what is helping you so that you can make choices as to how you’d like to design your life based on your results.

And, I’d love to hear from you! Share with us in the comment section on my Facebook page.

As always, lots of healing intentions for all of you and the planet, Dr. Arjan