It may be caused by a number of factors including obesity, infection, toxins and autoimmune diseases, and it can lead to several other chronic diseases, including atherosclerosis, obesity and diabetes.

Disorders associated with chronic systemic inflammation typically exhibit immune dysfunction, oxidative stress and free-radical production. The phytochemicals found in spices can reduce the pathological effects of chronic systemic inflammation by acting against each of these contributory factors as well as by direct anti-inflammatory action.

The most powerful anti-inflammatory spices include bay leaf , black pepper , garlic , ginger , oregano , rosemary , thyme and turmeric .

Types of Inflammation 

Inflammation is the immune system’s response to infection, injury and chemical or physical irritation. Broadly divided into acute and chronic forms, inflammation is one of the body’s essential defence mechanisms and plays a vital role in protecting us against microbial attack, external and internally-produced toxins, as well as damaged and diseased cells and tissues.  
Unfortunately, this process is inherently destructive, and both acute and chronic inflammation may cause damage to healthy tissues. 

Typically, the longer the inflammatory process lasts, the more damage it does to the tissues involved. In the case of a local infection, inflammatory damage often manifests itself as scar tissue and if a wound becomes infected or fails to heal quickly, it will leave more scar tissue than it would have had it healed normally. Similar but less visible processes are at work in chronic systemic inflammation that  cause widespread damage to a range of different tissue types leading to specific disease entities.
   
Although chronic systemic inflammation and local inflammation share the same biochemical processes, chronic systemic inflammation is not restricted to a specific tissue or organ, but instead involves the endothelial lining of blood vessels and several other tissue types. As a result  its disruptive effects are far reaching, causing damage to the nervous, endocrine and other systems.

Inflammatory damage 

This damage may, in turn, precipitate or exacerbate a wide variety of other pathological processes. Chronic systemic inflammation is, for example, closely implicated in the development of insulin resistance – and thereby metabolic syndrome and diabetes – which is rarely found without raised levels of the circulating inflammatory markers associated with chronic systemic inflammation.

Damage to the arterial endothelium and the subsequent development of atherosclerosis has also been linked to chronic systemic inflammation. In addition to its important underlying role in obesity, insulin resistance and atherosclerosis, chronic systemic inflammation has also been implicated in some forms of depression and even sleep disorders.

Only recently identified and subjected to scientific investigation, chronic systemic inflammation is still considered to be more of an underlying pathological process rather than a particular disease entity, and there are no specific diagnostic tests or targeted treatment interventions for it. Although the precise causes are not clear, a number of factors have been implicated in this condition.

Causes of Chronic Systemic Inflammation

     Obesity

• Several substances involved in the inflammatory response are produced in adipose tissue. Abdominal fat in particular is very active both metabolically and immunologically, and is associated with the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, C-reactive protein and other circulating markers of inflammation. Obesity and the accumulation of abdominal fat leads to abnormally high levels of these substances, causing imbalances to the immune system and the increase of the inflammatory response.

• Infections

  All chronic infections sustain the inflammatory response by stimulating an increase in the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines. When present in excessive amounts, these chemical messengers are capable of prompting antibodies and white blood cells to destroy cells that may be healthy and far-removed from the site of the primary infection. Infections that could contribute to chronic systemic inflammation include undiagnosed kidney or bladder infections, low-grade gall bladder infection, chronic tonsillitis, diverticular disease, hepatitis, chronic viral diseases like HIV, cytomegalovirus and infectious mononucleosis or any other chronic infection such as Lyme disease or brucellosis. Periodontal disease, in particular, has been closely linked to chronic systemic inflammation.

• Periodontal Disease

  Along with obesity, periodontal disease (or periodontal infection) is believed to be one of the major causes of chronic systemic inflammation. Dental plaque is often responsible for initiating periodontal disease by releasing a variety of biologically active products, such as bacterial and protein toxins, and organic acids. These molecules stimulate the body to produce pro-inflammatory cytokines, prostaglandins and other molecules involved in inflammation. All of these can contribute to a low-grade chronic systemic inflammation in tissues far from the mouth. The treatment of periodontal disease substantially reduces the quantities of circulating pro-inflammatory agents, and can even reverse some of the damage done to the endothelial lining of the arteries.

• Intestinal Parasites

  Intestinal parasites such as giardia, roundworms, hookworms and others set up potent inflammatory responses in the lining of the intestines resulting in the release of inflammatory products into the blood stream. These substances can, in turn, contribute to chronic systemic inflammation.

• Environmental Toxins, Drugs and Tobacco

  Most foreign substances can trigger an inflammatory response. This is probably one of the reasons that smoking tobacco is associated with an increased risk for heart disease and stroke. Inflammation in response to tobacco toxins is known to cause damage to the arterial endothelium, thereby aggravating the development of atherosclerosis.

• Allergies and Autoimmune Disease

• Allergies and autoimmune diseases are pathological conditions where the immune system reacts inappropriately to normal tissues or non-threatening environmental substances like pollens. These conditions, which include rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, vary widely in their intensity. However, particularly in the case of auto-immune disease, they may precipitate serious inflammatory-mediated tissue damage. There is, moreover, some evidence to show that periodontal disease and other chronic infections may actually initiate some allergies and autoimmune disorders, thereby contributing both directly and indirectly to chronic systemic inflammation.

 Spices and Chronic Systemic Inflammation

The first step in dealing with chronic systemic inflammation is to find and treat the cause of the inflammation. This may require improving dental hygiene, stopping smoking, avoiding allergens, or losing weight.  Such interventions can be dramatically augmented by the consumption of spices, several of which have powerful anti-inflammatory effects. Among the most potent of these are bay leaf, garlic, ginger oregano, rosemary, thyme and turmeric. The anti-inflammatory phytochemicals contained in these spices act on a variety of mechanisms including the inhibition of COX-I and COX-2 enzymes  and chemicals such as prostaglandins that are all important components of the inflammatory response. 

Spices, in particular black pepper and garlic , counteract chronic systemic inflammation by modulating the immune system thereby limiting the excessive production of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Furthermore, as many of the causes of chronic systemic inflammation – including obesity, toxins and infections – are associated with oxidative stress, the antioxidants found in most spices help control this condition too.

The myriad spice-derived antioxidants are able to “mop up” a wide range of inhaled, ingested and internally produced free radicals that can lead to chronic systemic inflammation. Indirectly, spices’ antimicrobial phytochemicals can also fight chronic systemic inflammation, by protecting against the infections that precipitate this inflammatory response.

In short, spice-derived phytochemicals have all the attributes required to minimize the impact on our health of the insidious, destructive and potentially lethal effects of chronic systemic inflammation.

Anti-inflammatory Properties of Key Spices

Direct anti-inflammatory action                    bay leaf , garlic , ginger , oregano,  rosemary
                                                                           thyme,  turmeric

Immune modulation and control                 black pepper, garlic                   
of pro-inflammatory cytokines

Protect against lipid oxidation                      Allspice , cinnamon , clove , ginger ,
 associated with inflammation                     oregano, peppermint , thyme