Читать книгу Anti-Inflammatory Diet For Dummies - Artemis Morris - Страница 44

Clinical research has uncovered a strong link between inflammation and heart disease, the leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States. Inflammation plays an important role in atherosclerosis, in which fatty deposits build up in the lining of the arteries.

When inflammation damages blood vessels, the body uses cholesterol to patch them up, creating plaque that can lead to atherosclerosis and other heart-related diseases. (See the nearby sidebar for details.)

The connection between inflammation and heart disease is so strong that in 2003, the American Heart Association (AHA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a joint medical statement opening the door for the use of inflammatory markers, such as C-reactive protein in the blood, in helping to diagnose heart disease and gauge its severity. In other words, the two agencies gave the okay to doctors to start drawing a line connecting inflammation to heart disease.

In this section, we discuss common types of heart disease related to inflammation and discuss a few ways to lower your risk factors.