What Inflammation Does To The Body

When it functions normally, it is a natural and helpful response by the body to protect you

- Nina Agrawal

NEW YORK - Inflammation has become a bit of a dirty word. People blame it for a number of diseases. They try to eat foods that fight it and take medication to tamp down the pain it causes.

But inflammation, when it functions normally, is a natural and helpful response by the body to protect you.

It is the alarm sounded when you are infected with a virus, and what helps bones heal in the days and weeks after breaking an ankle.

It is only when it sticks around for too long or appears when there is no threat that inflammation can become harmful.

The "good" and "bad" kinds of inflammation share some characteristics, but a major difference lies in how long it lasts.

Take a person who accidentally cuts his hand with a knife while washing dishes, for instance. Bacteria on the skin or knife can get into the tissue underneath, where cells recognize the invaders as foreign and send out chemical messengers. This kicks off the inflammatory response.

The messengers tell nearby blood vessels to dilate and become more permeable, making it easier for blood, fluid and immune cells to flow to the area.

This causes the hallmark symptoms of inflammation: swelling, redness, heat and pain.

The person might feel tenderness around the wound or an instinctive reluctance to use that part of the body which protects the area from further injury.

White blood cells arrive to eat up the bacteria. Pus is a sign that those white blood cells did their job and died.