Infection: Why Do We Get Sick?

Why do we get sick? My basic premise behind illness is that prolonged malfunction results in disease. What are the roles of malnutrition, allergy, toxin, tissue damage, and infection?

Deficiency disorders are old. They presented in the past as famine. Today they are cloaked in the guise of packaged and processed foods. Nutritional deprivation abounds as we drown in a sea of caloric overabundance. The introduction of white flour and high fructose corn syrup are major players in our current obesity epidemic, as well.

Allergy has been around for a millennium. There has been an explosion of allergy problems over the past thirty years. Growing up in the 50’s and 60’s, peanut allergy was quite rare. Since the onslaught of processing foods for shelf life and ‘Frankenfoods’ from GMO’s, allergies have exploded. Peanut anaphylaxis and asthma have gone through the roof. Do not be surprised that ADD and ADHD have a large allergy component!

Toxins are relatively new. The exposure to never encountered molecules of manufacturing have sky rocketed since the petroleum age. To think our government is keeping close tabs on our safety is insane. Leaded gasoline was used for the longest time before it was banned. The very odd molecules are not the dangerous ones. Hormone mimickers in the form of plastics and pesticides are treacherous because they look like our own molecules. In holistic medicine the thought of ‘total toxic load’ is a plausible hypothesis. This ‘load’ may interfere with energy production, detoxification, cellular communication, and immune function.

Is it plausible that this interference of function has an impact on our ability to fight infection? Most definitely it does!

Tissue damage exposes internal shielded proteins to the immune system. The purpose of this process is to promote proper healing from injury. The initiation of the inflammatory process is critical in healing. Due to the above, auto immunity is the leading cause of chronic disease in the modern world. This is not a renegade immune system. Auto immunity arises from the accumulation of foreign material irritating the immune system; attaching and deforming proteins so they no longer look native to a hypervigilant immune system.

Infections are old. They have been around since the dawn of human kind. We have evolved to respond very strongly to invasion from microbes. Every microbe is looking for a warm home and a free lunch at your expense. The most physiologic chaos occurs from infection, resulting with a myriad of non sustainable physiologic events. The inflammatory cascade is initiated, white blood cells unleash a burst of oxidative chemicals to destroy the invader. The blood clots to limit infectious spread. Membranes get leaky resulting in tissue swell. The adrenals kick in to overdrive. The body converts from anabolic to catabolic. There is a drop in our pH.

Infections are difficult to diagnose. We classically think of infection as fever chills, aches, and local symptoms at the site of proliferation. I believe low grade infections are present much more commonly than we think. Soft nebulous symptoms of fatigue, allergy, rash, aches, irritability, mood disturbances, poor sleep, may be more subtle signs of progressing danger.

Let’s discuss a test case. Poor guy has a lifetime of accumulating toxins living in a manufacturing town. On top of this, he has a mouth full of mercury amalgams leaching into his system. Unknowingly, he has grown up with the Standard American Diet, full of allergenic wheat, processed milk protein, GMO corn and soy, Frankenstein meats, plenty of sugar, and loads of trans fats. Not surprisingly, this accumulation progresses from seasonal allergies, to chronic sinusitis, inability to fight off colds, crippling asthma and joint swelling, Hashimoto’s, thyroiditis, and depression. This was me twenty years ago. I was on every modern medicine to mask the symptoms, but never got down to the underlying cause. Today I am well, and only on thyroid medication.

With so much stacked against us, how do we survive? Have no fear. God has designed us well. We are designed to heal. Go back to Great Grandmother’s observational wisdom. Build a strong foundation with the basics:

• Early to bed early to rise.
• Get plenty fresh air.
• Exercise regularly.
• Eat your vegetables. Especially fermented ones.
• Drink plenty of clean water.
• Love your God and family.
• Fill your life with laughter, joy, friendship, and gratitude.