Only 30 years ago, the thought of infections causing gastric ulcers and infectious heart disease was unheard of in the scientific and medical community. Proponents of that concept were far ahead of their time and was indeed ridiculed at that time . After 30 years of research, conventional medicine now embraces the truth – that infection is the major cause of gastric ulcers. In addition, infection has also been linked to heart disease according to some studies which have shown that the more infectious agents, a person is being tested positive, the more likely he or she is likely to die from a heart attack.
Infection is a trigger for a cascade of inflammatory responses in the human body. The inflammation releases numerous chemicals inside the body, ultimately leading to a constriction of the blood vessels as well as plaque formation. Autopsy studies have found that 40% of the heart attack victims actually have clear arteries. Obviously, there are other sources of trigger that can cause the arteries to constrict but infection is surely one of the primary candidates.
a) Chlamydia pneumonia: this is a very common pathogen that is responsible for common respiratory tract infections such as bronchitis and pneumonia. If you are fortunate to live to the age of 70, 80% of you will have the sad experience to being infected by this bug. Often times this kind of infection is uneventful and you will quickly recover within a few days. However, many of you will have suffered chronic infections from this bug and eve if you recover from what seems to be an uneventful infectious event, the residual infectious pathogen still remains in your body and can stimulate the release of immunoglobulins from your body. These immunoglobulins will attack your body from time to time and can cause only infectious heart disease but also chronic fatigue as well as fibromyalgia symptoms.
b) Helicobacter pylori: It has been well established now that H pylori is responsible for a the majority of gastric ulcers. This is in stark contrast to what the conventional wisdom was for many years, which was the excessive production of acid from stress was the reason. Research has now linked this bacteria to infectious heart disease and it is likely that this bacteria is also responsible for triggering an inflammatory response that can ultimately lead to a constriction of blood vessels in the heart and resulting in a heart attack.
Pathogens from both gingivitis and periodontal diseases can escape into the blood stream and travel to the heart where it can cause a inflammatory response. Infected root canals is home to many germs and infectious agents and studies have now shown that people with poor dental hygiene have a higher risk of infectious heart disease.
Infectious diseases is the third leading cause of death after cancer and infectious heart disease now claims more than 100 million American lives each year.
Those who are at high risk for infections include the aged as well as those who are immuno-compromised and they should take extra care to prevent from getting infected. The following are tips may be helpful.
When boosting the immune system, it is also important to understand that the immune system and inflammatory response are part of a network of systems in the body. This holistic approach to health is known as the neuroendocrine metabolic (NEM) response. When one part is down or compromised, it affects all aspects of the body. This may help to understand why certain conditions affect the immune system, and also why when infections attack the body, many other systems are affected. The body, while made up of many systems, does function as a whole. If one part is out of balance, it disrupts all processes.
As many as 75% of Americans suffer from some form of bacterial, parasitic, viral, or fungal infection and this can run from a totally asymptomatic disease to a devastating one. Symptoms of such infection include mild muscle pain, chronic fatigue, sinus infections, strap throat, and stroke. The good news is that this kind of infection can be controlled by taking natural supplements.
