{"id":198,"date":"2014-09-26T15:42:54","date_gmt":"2014-09-26T15:42:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/?p=198"},"modified":"2019-05-11T18:53:38","modified_gmt":"2019-05-12T01:53:38","slug":"are-my-arteries-on-fire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/are-my-arteries-on-fire\/","title":{"rendered":"Are My Arteries \u201cOn Fire\u201d?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Role of Inflammation in Plaque Formation and Rupture<\/p>\n<p>Chronic inflammation in the body is the root cause of many medical conditions, including cardiovascular disease. Other diseases related to inflammation are diabetes, depression, hypertension, and Alzheimer\u2019s disease. Inflammation attacks the walls of the arteries and increases the risk of plaque formation and plaque rupture: the cause of heart attacks and strokes. Inflammation is the body\u2019s natural defense mechanism to fight off infection and toxins. If the natural balance of our immune system is disrupted, it can shift into a chronic state of inflammation, adversely affecting our entire body, including our arteries where cholesterol is then deposited and plaque buildup begins. (See \u2018How Plaque Causes a Heart Attack or Stroke\u2019 article)<\/p>\n<p>The following three blood tests are independent predictors of risk factors for heart attacks and stroke:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>CRP-hs (C-Reactive Protein-highly sensitive) is a simple blood test that measures the amount of inflammation in the body.\u00a0 \uf0b7 Lp-PLA2 is a blood enzyme that is released from vulnerable, rupture-prone plaque in the arteries.\u00a0 Elevated levels of both Lp-PLA2 and CRP-hs increases the risk for a heart or stroke event of up to\u00a0 5X the normal risk.<\/li>\n<li>MPO (myeloperoxidase) is an enzyme in white blood cells that is linked to inflammation and plaque activity. MPO is a marker for vulnerable rupture-prone plaque. Elevated blood levels of MPO predict an early risk of heart attack in patients with chest pain.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For more information: www.clevelandheartlab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/&#8230;\/MPO-Practice.pdf<\/p>\n<p>Obvious causes of inflammation include arthritis, infection and injury. Other causes include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\uf071 Diet high in sugars, refined flour, trans fats, saturated fats and processed foods<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Overweight, especially abdominal fat (Waist: Women &#8211; 35\u201d and Men &#8211; 40\u201d)<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Smoking<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Lack of exercise<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Stress, physical and emotional<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Sleep deprivation of less than 7 hours per night (possible Sleep Apnea)<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Toxins (mercury, lead)<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Food allergies, such as gluten and dairy<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Nutritional deficiencies including Vitamins D, B, C and Omega-3 fatty acids<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>How can inflammation be lowered?<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\uf071 Diet: LOW in trans\/saturated and low glycemic index carbohydrates, HIGH in monounsaturated fats,<\/li>\n<li>fruits and vegetables.<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Aerobic Exercise \u2013 five days a weeks for 30 minutes\/day<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Smoking cessation<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Weight loss \u2013 goal of BMI below 25<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Omega 3 fatty acid supplements (EPA &amp; DHA)<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Fruits and vegetables<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Stress management techniques<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Adequate sleep<\/li>\n<li>\uf071 Medications &amp; Supplements, including Statins, Fibrates, Niacin, Vitamin D3, fiber<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Contact Dr. Gordon C. Gunn, M.D., a specialist in female urology. \u00a0Don\u2019t continue to suffer, call his office today for an appointment 714-912-2211 or visit his website at\u00a0<a href=\"\/\/www.gordongunnmd.com\/\">www.gordongunnmd.com<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Dr. Gordon Gunn also proudly serves Buena Park, La Mirada, Yorba Linda, Diamond Bar, Walnut and surrounding areas<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Role of Inflammation in Plaque Formation and Rupture Chronic inflammation in the body is the root cause of many medical conditions, including cardiovascular disease. Other diseases related to inflammation are diabetes, depression, hypertension, and Alzheimer\u2019s disease. Inflammation attacks the walls of the arteries and increases the risk of plaque formation and plaque rupture: the cause &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/are-my-arteries-on-fire\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Are My Arteries \u201cOn Fire\u201d?<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[4,29],"tags":[6,66,61,21],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3mKiD-3c","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/198"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=198"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/198\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":541,"href":"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/198\/revisions\/541"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=198"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=198"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/gordongunnmd.com\/womens_wellness\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=198"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}