TIME Anti-Inflammation

IN SOME WAYS, INFLAMMATION IS STRAIGHT-forward and easy to understand. It is the immune system’s primary response to injury, illness, or infection. Inflammation protects and heals us. Without it, none of us would last long. On the other hand, the underlying causes and consequences of inflammation are endlessly complex. Take two people and expose them to the exact same threat—a bee sting, for example—and their immune system’s inflammatory response may be dramatically different. While one person might develop a small, hardly noticeable red bump, the other could experience life-threatening anaphylaxis. “Inflammation is the body’s natural response to fighting something bad,” says Jason Hou, MD, a gastroenterologist and associate professor of medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center in Houston. “Our body uses inflammation…

IN THE EARLY DAYS OF MY MEDICAL RESIDENCY, I met a man whom I’ll call Jason. He arrived in our emergency room on a holiday, nonchalant yet amiable, and complained of mild chest pain. Jason was tall and trim, with a strong South Boston accent and fingertips still faintly stained from his last home-improvement project. He was only 45 years old, and he looked much younger. He didn’t smoke, barely drank alcohol, and his cholesterol levels had always been normal. No one in his family had a history of heart disease. He asked us if we could work quickly—he wanted to be home for dinner with his daughters. We welcomed a likely false alarm. Maybe Jason was having a bout of acid reflux, or even a panic attack. His heart,…

Women with gum disease are 14 percent more likely to develop cancer than those with healthy teeth and gums, according to a study published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention. The link appears to be strongest for esophageal cancer, but associations were also found between poor oral health and lung, gallbladder, breast, and skin cancer. The study looked at data from nearly 66,000 postmenopausal women, ages 54 to 86, who were followed for about eight years. At the start of the study, they completed a health survey and reported whether they had ever been diagnosed with periodontal disease, an inflammation of the gums that can lead to tooth loss. Gum disease is caused by sticky, bacteria-laden plaque that forms on teeth. In the early stages, known as gingivitis, the gums…

WHEN A LOVED ONE FREQUENTLY FORGETS IMPORTANT DEtails, loses their ability to drive safely, or mishandles their finances, cognitive decline may be underway, and it can take a devastating emotional toll. Cognition is a blend of brain processes, including learning, memory, and making judgments. Small changes in cognition can be normal in aging, but significant shifts can lead to Alzheimer’s disease. Another consequence of aging is a drop in immune function. According to a 2018 review published in Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience, the nervous system, which houses the brain, nerves, and spinal cord, has open lines of communication with the immune system. Your immune system initiates an inflammatory response to guard against threats from toxins, pathogens, and injuries. Inflammation is a routine response of the human body that helps with…

For people who suffer from depression or anxiety, being diagnosed with a physical health condition on top of their mental health issue can feel like the worst kind of luck. But recent research suggests that this type of dual diagnosis is more than just an unfortunate coincidence. Scientists are learning that seemingly unrelated psychological and physical issues may actually be closely connected. This mysterious mind-body connection seems to be at play in a study published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology that focused on the physical and mental health of people with psoriasis, an autoimmune disease that causes red patches and flaky scales to form on the surface of the skin. Depression is common among people with psoriasis, who often deal with discomfort and social stigma related to their condition.…

While COVID-19’s effects on the lungs and respiratory system are well known, there is growing research suggesting that the virus is also affecting the heart, with potentially lasting effects. In a presentation at the annual meeting of the Biophysical Society, an international biophysics scientific group, Andrew Marks, MD, chair of the department of physiology at Columbia University, and his colleagues reported on changes in the heart tissue of COVID-19 patients who had died from the disease, some of whom also had a history of heart conditions. The team conducted autopsy analyses and found a range of abnormalities, particularly in the way heart cells regulate calcium. All muscles, including those in the heart, rely on calcium to contract. Muscle cells store calcium and open special channels inside cells to release it…