We can’t stop the clock, but we help prevent ageing from undermining our quality of life by managing age-related inflammation and the chronic conditions it causes.
Inflammation is the body’s natural response to health threats, from a mozzie bite to a major injury or infection, says Durbanbased endocrinologist Dr Kumari Naidoo. It is controlled by the immune system through inflammatory cells and chemical messengers called cytokines. In acute inflammation, these send white blood cells to the site of the injury or infection for protection and healing, producing redness, warmth and swelling, which soon pass.
In chronic inflammation, however, there is no physical trigger – the body wrongly sends signals of distress, leading to long-term lowgrade inflammation that may go unnoticed until it rudely announces itself in autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis or systemic lupus, or in chronic diseases such as arthritis, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and cancer.
The work of time
Our bodies become more prone
