Those who reached this age milestone most probably know what I am talking about. The body changes. Its not due to a shift in perception, nor it is the number. It’s something completely different and I’ll talk about it in a minute. But first, a recap.

I sincerely hope that by now you know, that almost all problems and diseases start with chronic inflammation.  For example – cardiovascular diseases, metabolic and neurological diseases, inflammatory bowel diseases, asthma, arthritis, allergy, skin diseases as well as cancer, just to name a few.

Kurkumist saab kurkumiini, mis aitab võidelda enneaegse vananemise ilmingutega.

Turmeric becomes curcumin, which helps fight the signs of premature aging.

Lets recall how does a chronic inflammation develop?

State of our health is influenced by two things – external factors (how we live, what we eat) and internal processes of our body (how the cells and everything around them functions).

External factors can be addressed by appropriate diet, physical exercise and good health of your intestine, as this is simply put the main protective layer of your body. I’ve written why and how to keep your intestine in great shape in my previous article (you can read it here).

Internal processes are very complex and there are thousands of pages of research done on this. To put it simple, all health issues start with disfunction of cells and chronic inflammation. So this is where you want to direct your attention to and this is what we will talk about today.

Firstly, each cell of your body has a lifespan. Once the cell has done it’s job, it is due for utilization, or in other words removal from the body. Such a cell is called a senescent cell. The body either starts a special process of cell death and it’s eliminaton from the body (apoptosis), or the immune system detects and eliminates these cells. This ability however diminishes from the age of about 40. As a result, these senescent cells stick around in the body, releasing pro-inflammatory stuffs into the surrounding tissue. This causes chronic, or also called low-grade inflammation.

I have highlighted 6 very effective natural ingredients that help to prevent and treat inflammation in your body, therefore improving your health.

A small disclaimer – as you know, I am a big fan of natural and plant based substances, because at least from biochemical standpoint they are better suited for our body than synthetic substances. When used properly, most natural products have no or very few adverse effects. So, here we go:

  1. Curcumin

Curcumin is the yellow pigment from the Indian spice Curcuma longa.  It is great in fighting low grade inflammation and has a positive effect on nearly all systems of the body.

  • antioxidant
  • anti-inflammatory
  • antibacterial
  • antiviral

It is used to detoxify the body, stimulate immune system and is already for long time used in cancer therapy. Curcumin inhibits increased cell cycle and tumor development. Its for a reason that curcumin is listed in European Pharmacopoeia as a phototherapeutic agent.

Curcumin is friends with omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA. Curcumin increases the positive anti-inflammatory effect of omega-3. Both these anti-inflammatory natural substances are effective combination in acute and chronic inflammatory diseases.

The difficulty

Curcumin is not water soluble, the intestine resorption is low and therefore it has a low bioavailability. Therefore, unless you consume huge amounts of native curcumin daily, it is important to chose a curcumin product with a mechanism improving the resorption – please always keep this in mind.

There are different mechanisms to improve the resorption of curcumin. The most effective are y-cyclodextrin and polysorbate 80. The latter one has a negative effect on obesity and has been proven to induce inflammation, therefore I would not recommend it. Research has shown no risks or concerns of using the y-cyclodetrin, therefore it is a good activating agent for curcumin resorption. There are others too, but their effectiveness is much lower.

  1. Tumerosaccharides

This is a part of turmeric that is also vey useful as is pain-relieving and suppresses inflammation. It has a positive effect on the mobility of joints and reduction in joint pain.

  1. Black tea extract

Tea has a high concentration of bioactive ingredients, such as polyphenols. Particularly useful are theaflavins, which develop during the fermentation from green to black tea.

  • they have proven anti-inflammatory effect.
  • lower LDL cholesterol levels and blood pressure, therefore reduces risks of cardiovascular diseases and has a positive effect on heart health.
  • support immune system in eliminating aged cells and thus reducing chronic inflammation
  1. Ginger

In 2018, ginger was named “medical plant of the year” for a good reason. It has a

  • pain relieving
  • antoxidant effect
  • supports digestive tract
  • helps with ausea, gastric ulcers, osteoarthritis and rheumatic arthritis
  • antibacterial and anti-funcgicidal effect
  1. Quercetin

It is a natural pigment present in many fruits, vegetables, grains and tea. This flavonoid is one of the most abundant antioxidants in the diet and additionally to that is:

  • anti-inflammatry
  • anti-allergic: reduces inflammation in the airways and the lungs, and can block allergic reaction to pollen.
  • immunoprotective
  • anti-bacterial
  • reduces blood pressure and LDL and reduces risk of heart attack.
  • supports immune system in eliminating aged cells and thus reducing chronic inflammation
  1. Vitamin C

Vitamin C is an essential vitamin, meaning your body can’t produce it. Yet, it has many roles and has been linked to impressive health benefits.

  • supports immune system
  • antioxidant
  • improves curcumin metabolism
  • counteracts ageing process

During a common cold, up to 2g vitamin C can be taken to support the immune system.

Thankfully, there has been a lot of research on what our body needs and many laboratories have been working on creating supplements with omega-3, vitamins, minerals and so for. I do encourage you to be careful with dosage. It is like with anything else in life – the dosage is what makes something good or bad for you.

It is rare though that a supplement would contain all of the 6 elements we talked about today, in the right dosage and made from the best natural raw materials. I have not been able to find too many supplements that I trust, but there is surely one – PRO CURMIN FORTE by my favorite laboratory TISSO. I have been prescribing their PRO EM SAN PUR probiotics for over 15 years now with great health benefits to all my customers without any exception, I believe it is the best probiotic out there. That’s why I am so excited about the PRO CURMIN FORTE by the same laboratory. I have long been waiting for a well balanced and highly bioavailable curcumin product and am excited that TISSO has managed to develop a perfectly balanced supplement to fight inflammation.

It has now been widely proven, that excess body weight disturbs many key processes in the body and creates a lot of inflammation, therefore being a source of many diseases and depression. Therefore, maintaining healthy weight should always be in the back of your mind. You are always welcome for a consult or to join one of our programs at Loodus BioSpa.

Wishing you the best health,
Dr. Natalia Trofimova