Nearly half of you reading this article already suffer from at least one chronic disease. Each year, 7/10 deaths result from chronic disease. In financial costs, chronic disease currently accounts for nearly 3/4 of your healthcare dollars and $4.1 trillion annually. If we continue on this path, in seven years, nearly one-third of you will suffer from three or more chronic diseases.
What Is Chronic Disease?
Sources vary on what, specifically, constitutes a chronic disease. So, we want to clarify things here for you from a holistic healing perspective. The amount of time a person has spent experiencing a disease or imbalance is a crucial factor. After all, “chronic” vs. “acute” have very different definitions and offer different experiences: long-term vs. short-term, permanent vs. temporary, continuing vs. limited, etc.
If you live in the U.S. and follow CDC guidelines, chronic diseases include heart disease, stroke, cancer, type 2 diabetes, obesity and arthritis. Other U.S. authorities and research institutions also include conditions such as Alzheimer’s, depression, HIV, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, asthma and COPD.
From a holistic healing perspective, any disease or imbalance that is persistent, long-lasting or recurrent in your body or mind could be considered a chronic condition. This includes long-term pain, hormonal imbalances, adrenal insufficiency, hyper or hypothyroidism, depression, anxiety and any immune disorder, including allergies.
Importantly, the major risk factors for chronic disease – lack of physical activity, diet, smoking, and excessive alcohol consumption – can be modified to greatly reduce the statistics above. The problem, however, is that changing these behaviors is much harder than it seems. If we could all just eat better and exercise everyday, we’d be doing it already.
There are other risk factors as well for chronic disease and each person’s resiliency to external and internal drivers of chronic disease is different. Furthermore, many people who believe they already follow a “good” diet and lifestyle will still suffer from chronic disease, which suggests that we have to find better solutions.
Chronic Disease and Inflammation
In what some are calling “one of the most important discoveries of the past two decades”, inflammation is now being touted as the root cause of almost all chronic diseases. In fact, chronic inflammatory diseases (cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, liver disorder, autoimmune and neurodegenerative disorders, etc.) are now attributed to more than 50 percent of all deaths.
And, scientists are finding that the risk of developing an inflammatory disorder can be traced back to early childhood, which means that the nutrition and lifestyle habits you create as a child can and will have lasting effects on your long-term health and wellbeing.
While obesity is a major driver of inflammation and chronic disease, it’s not about size. If you ask any Ayurvedic practitioner, they will tell you that the healthiest constitutions are those that have a prevalence of balanced and healthy earth and water (kapha dosha). These constitutions have greater robustness and healthier tissues that are strong, stable, and resilient.
Diseases related to obesity arise when there is an excess of earth and water-type tissue and that tissue itself is unhealthy. Unhealthy adipose tissue produces pro-inflammatory cytokines, which is a fancy way of saying that unhealthy fat makes you sick. Not being obese – or having a “normal” BMI (which can be misleading because it compares you to an average that doesn’t take into account your personal constitution) – does not preclude you from chronic disease since depletion, inflammation and high toxic loads are often seen in people of “normal” or “low” body weight.
There are also a host of inflammatory disorders that you rarely perceive or feel mostly because we brush off “not feeling well” as normal or we are too distracted by life to take care of ourselves. This type of long-term, chronic inflammation can damage tissues and organs over time and can slowly build in the body until one day you are very surprised to learn you have cancer, heart disease, type-2 diabetes, etc. This becomes especially true as we age and our cells and tissues become more susceptible to oxidative stress.
Signs of Inflammation
Each person’s inflammatory response will be different. Some will suffer the occasional allergy, some persistent seasonal allergies. Some will experience brief soreness, pain or a rash; while others will feel chronic pain, fatigue, or recurrent skin conditions. Some of this can be attributed to genetics, but mostly it’s related to nutrition and lifestyle.
A normal inflammatory response is one that comes and goes fairly quickly. We need these brief responses to help keep us healthy. But, we also need to listen to our body even during brief, normal inflammatory responses. Popping a NSAID and hoping for the best simply isn’t enough.
The failure to resolve acute inflammation in the moment with rest and appropriate healing therapies will lead to chronic inflammation and a breakdown of immunity overtime. The weakening of your immune system will lead to “a major alteration in all tissues, organs as well as normal cellular physiology,” thus increasing your risk for chronic disease.
Some specific signs that you may have a chronic inflammatory disorder include: sadness, lack of pleasure in life, fatigue, reduced libido, lack of hunger, altered sleep, social-behavioral withdrawal, increased blood pressure, insulin resistance and clogged arteries. Low-grade systemic inflammation can be caused by any of the following factors: chronic infections, physical inactivity, obesity, gut dysbiosis, diet, social isolation, psychological stress, disturbed sleep, disrupted circadian rhythms and exposure to pollutants.
As a holistic practitioner, I would also add: eating foods that create toxins (or ama) in your body, such as oxidized oils (that are full of free radicals that can bind to your cells, break them down, and cause chronic low-grade inflammation); old food; some frozen foods; processed foods; constitutionally-incorrect foods; chronic stress; self-defeating behaviors; physical and emotional stress; poor posture; inadequate sleep habits…or anything that doesn’t suit your personal constitutional needs can be a precursor for chronic disease.
Please note that free radical (toxins/ama) consequences are well-documented in scientific studies that have shown these substances to be precursors to atherosclerosis, cancer, inflammatory joint disease, asthma, diabetes, senile dementia, degenerative eye disease, premature aging, etc.. In sum, your body will fight back against anything that doesn’t suit it – and that “fighting back” looks like inflammation, autoimmune responses and, eventually, chronic disease.
Avoiding Chronic Disease
While everyone is different, we offer a few basic recommendations to help you avoid chronic disease:
- Tame inflammation – chronic low-grade inflammation is at the root of almost all chronic disease.
- Cleansing – If you have never flushed your body of toxins, it’s a good place to start. Ayurvedic cleansing is very safe, supportive and nutritive. Many modern cleanses have proven to be too depleting to the body and produce unsustainable results. Working with a holistic practitioner is the best way to support your particular needs and avoid common cleansing-related imbalances.
- Take Pause – Subtle body therapies such as meditation, yoga, tai chi, and qigong, which have been implemented in holistic healing practices for thousands of years, are now being proven effective by the Western medical community at lowering some markers of inflammation. Find a local class or join an online community to start your healing journey today.
The information contained within this article is for educational purposes only and should not replace the direct advice of a doctor or other qualified healthcare professional. Always consult a medical or other professional healthcare provider when considering a new health regime.
