How to know your risk of developing a major chronic disease

Wouldn’t it be nice if there was one, simple test you could take to get a full picture of your overall health?

Of course, there are hundreds of tests available to analyze virtually every health marker. But all those testing costs can add up fairly quickly. And then you have the challenge of interpreting all the results and medical jargon…

But until an all-in-one testing solution is a reality, you can rely on the next best thing…

All you have to do is test for chronic inflammation—the condition that lays the groundwork for a variety of major diseases like cancer, heart disease, dementia, arthritis, and many others.

Today, we’ll take a look at three tests you can use to assess your body’s inflammation levels and get an idea of the state your general health is really in. I’ll also share some immediate steps you can take to lower inflammation and turn your health around.

The sparks that light a deadly fuse

What triggers chronic inflammation in the first place? Dr. Marc Micozzi offers a straightforward explanation in his Protocol for Eliminating Deadly Inflammation:

“When there’s chronic damage deep inside your body—from poor diet, too much stress, too little physical activity, toxins, and other negative influences—your immune system sparks chronic, low-grade inflammation,” he says.

Acute inflammation is temporary and heals relatively quickly. But chronic inflammation doesn’t heal, it destroys.

Dr. Micozzi cites a handful of examples:

Chronic arterial inflammation damages blood vessels, setting the stage for heart attack and stroke.
Chronic inflammation in the joints destroys cartilage, which can lead to osteoarthritis.
Chronic brain inflammation can trigger cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s.
Chronically inflamed fat tissue destroys blood sugar balance, which can cause or perpetuate type 2 diabetes.
Chronic cellular inflammation often develops into cancer.
An overactive immune system can ignite chronic inflammation in addition to autoimmune diseases—like multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and the aptly named inflammatory bowel disease. Dr. Micozzi estimates that autoimmune diseases afflict up to 50 million Americans—about one in five of us!

But if you have high levels of chronic inflammation, not all hope is lost.

Dr. Micozzi explains, “Getting a handle on chronic inflammation will help you reduce your risk of developing these and many other killer conditions—and help you control and reverse them if you’re already suffering from one.”

These simple tests can make a world of difference

It’s crucial to know where you stand when it comes to chronic inflammation.

The first step is to ask your doctor for a simple blood test to measure your levels for the following health markers:

C-reactive protein, or CRP
hemoglobin A1C
Serum ferritin

These results can quickly reveal the telltale signs that signal inflammation distress. Here’s what you need to know about these markers:

CRP is naturally produced in your liver, and is a well-known and highly reliable biomarker for inflammation.

Dr. Micozzi explains, “I’d go so far as to say that the ‘highly sensitive CRP test’ (Hs-CRP) is the best way to not only measure inflammation but also the health of your coronary arteries. In fact, it’s a much better measure of heart health than cholesterol levels.

“Your CRP level should be less than 1 mg/L. If your number is too high, it means you have a lot of harmful inflammation.”

Dr. Micozzi says his top two recommendations for lowering CRP are quite simple:

Cut sugar out of your diet.
Take a fish oil supplement. (His recommended daily intake of the two key omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil are: 1,000 to 1,300 mg of DHA, and 1,400 to 1,800 mg of EPA. Be sure to check the Supplement Facts on the back of the bottle to ensure you’re getting proper dosages.)

Tracking blood levels of sugar and iron

Next up is the hemoglobin A1C test—also known as HA1c, HbA1c, glycated hemoglobin, or the glycohemoglobin test.

If you have diabetes or blood sugar issues, you may already know about this test since it measures the percentage of hemoglobin bound to sugar, giving you a long-term measure of your average blood sugar levels.

Dr. Micozzi notes that this long-term measure is why HA1c is an accurate indication of your risk for diabetes. And he adds, “In a person with the disease, it shows whether or not diabetes is well-controlled.

“If HA1c is high, it means chronic inflammation is high, too. HA1c should be between 4.4 and 6.5 percent. However, if you have diabetes and are older, you can work with your doctor to adjust to the levels that suit you best.”

The last marker you should get tested for is serum ferritin.

Dr. Micozzi explains that your body makes the protein ferritin to bind free iron so it can be used by the cells. But if your ferritin is high, it means your iron isn’t all bound to hemoglobin in the blood where it belongs. Instead, excess iron is floating around the body.

And that’s a big problem.

Like other heavy metals, excess iron sparks inflammation. That’s why Dr. Micozzi cautions against taking any supplement that includes iron, unless you’ve been diagnosed by your doctor with clinical iron deficiency anemia.

In general, he says, normal ferritin levels range from 12 to 300 nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL) for men, and 12 to 150 ng/mL for women.

In addition to these three blood tests, Dr. Micozzi strongly recommends two more that are also essential in revealing your body’s true inflammation status. You can read about those in his Protocol for Eliminating Deadly Inflammation, along with many proven strategies for calming and cooling systemic inflammation for the very best of health.

Click here to get started right away, or to learn more about Dr. Micozzi’s time-proven techniques to banish inflammation—for good!