Top 6 Root Causes of Inflammation and How to Heal Your Body Naturally

For two years, my stubborn weight gain had me stumped.

I didn’t understand why I gained 15 pounds over 6 months without any changes in my routine, diet, or exercise.

I was tired all the time.

I couldn’t get past the brain fog that kept rolling in.

But my outward appearance was the stigma that finally got me to see the big picture. Crazy cravings aside, I knew I was eating well and exercising like I should.

And here I was preaching to all of you how to heal your bodies when what I needed to do was take a step back and look at MY big picture!

Digging Down to the Root

At first, I thought it was stress. Because isn’t stress the cause of all of our suffering?

So, I pulled out my oils, found my happy place in nature, and tried to self-care and green smoothie my way back to normal.

It didn’t work.

Something felt off, and the weight didn’t budge.

And then, because I was paying so much attention and really tuning into myself, I realized there were other symptoms that started to appear.

I was foggy and couldn’t get words to come outright.
I wasn’t sleeping well.
I had weird cravings for more than my usual favorites like avocado and spice.
I was losing my eyebrows and hair.

Masking the symptoms won’t do me any good, and I knew it.

So, I took a step back from the symptoms and began to dig. To focus on true healing, I had to dig down to the root.

What’s Behind It All?

Inflammation.

This was the root of the evil lurking in my body. But beyond my body, I began to realize how seriously inflammation affects the thousands of women I encounter as well. From autoimmunity to brain fog to gut disorders and hormone imbalances, excess inflammation in your body could be what is making you sick.

Inflammation in moderation is a healthy thing in your body. It’s a marker of a healthy immune system that fights off invaders and brings necessary blood flow and nutrients to harmed areas. However, when inflammation is constant and out of control, it can wreak havoc on your body’s homeostasis.

But I dug even deeper…

If inflammation causes the symptoms, then what is causing the inflammation?

There are many things that can contribute to excess inflammation in your cells, and it’s not always just one of these. You may have to address a combination of these factors to find the answers to lead you on your healing journey.

Top 6 Root Causes of Inflammation

Here are six of the major root causes to consider when you are trying to figure out what is causing inflammation inside your body:

#1 – Stealth and Latent Infections

Whether bacterial, viral, or parasitic, hidden infections in your body can wreak havoc on the balance of your hormones. These are diseases that don’t necessarily show symptoms right away, but they cause your immune system to be on constant alert, leading to more inflammation.

Lyme and Epstein-Barr are two of the most common viral stealth infections that could be lurking in your body without your knowledge, but there are many more possibilities including things lurking deep in your gut like SIBO, H. pylori, or Candida. Work with a trusted doctor to identify or rule out this as a root cause of your symptoms!

If you feel like your body may be battling an infection below the surface, check out my interview with Dr. Jessica Peatross on the Essentially You podcast. She and I go into a whole lot more detail on ways to identify and combat these illnesses!

#2 – Heavy Metal Toxicity

Unfortunately in our modern culture, we are exposed to heavy metals at just about every turn. From food and water contamination to household and beauty products, heavy metals could be hiding even in your own home. When your body absorbs too much of these metals, once again it can cause a heightened immune response, leading to excess inflammation.

Another danger here is that metals can block your body from absorbing key nutrients. Your thyroid, for example, may not absorb the iodine it needs if you have been exposed to too much mercury. (1) This would throw off your balance of hormones and make it difficult for your body to stay balanced.

The best thing you can do is detox regularly. Your liver goes into overdrive and can become sluggish when you have constant toxic exposure. In my 14-Day Hormone Detox, I walk you through protocols, recipes, supplements, essential oils, and more to support your liver in its work of cleansing your body to restore balance to your metabolism and hormones.

Self-care is a cornerstone of this program…you need to take time for yourself to get rid of that junk! With the rituals and tips I share in the Hormone Detox program, you will learn valuable ways to show your body some self-love and find true healing! Click here to learn more.

#3 – Environmental Toxins

Our world is full of substances that could be making us sick. From polluted drinking water to foods filled with herbicides and pesticides to cosmetics loaded down with artificial fragrances and unpronounceable ingredients, your own home may be harboring things that are hindering your healing. The more you are exposed to these substances, the more your body will feel a need to fight it off with inflammation.

Eliminating as many environmental toxins as possible from your lifestyle is a good step in regaining your health. Whether or not this is a true root cause of your sickness, it’s a good thing for everybody to do!

Try eating organic foods as much as possible, as these will not be contaminated with herbicides and pesticides.

Drink filtered water so you aren’t exposing your system to chemicals that have leached into the water supply.

Switch out your cosmetics and home products for natural, non-toxic options. My go-to cleaning products and household remedies are in The Smart Mom’s Guide to Essential Oils. I also love using essential oils in my beauty routine instead of heavily-fragranced products.

I know it can be overwhelming to try to reduce your exposure to toxins, and you can only control so much. But start small and work that garbage bag. Start with one area of your routine and slowly ditch the nasty chemicals as you feel able to. Even though you can’t control the environment you encounter outside your home, you can take ownership of what you and your family are exposed to within your walls!

For those times where toxic exposure is unavoidable, detoxing is the best way to show your body the love it deserves. In my 14-Day Hormone Detox, I will help you identify the toxins in your routine, find healthy alternatives, and learn how to best fuel your body so inflammation is no longer in the driver’s seat!

Take back control of your health, hormones, and home with the tips and tricks I share in the 14-Day Hormone Detox.

#4 – Chronic Stress

We all know that stress is bad. It makes us more tired, more irritable and leads to more symptoms like cravings and brain fog.

While chronic stress was not the only root cause of my out-of-control inflammation, it definitely contributed to it.

Your body has a healthy stress response that reacts to a threat: cortisol. This hormone sends your body into fight-or-flight mode, which is great when you need to act fast. But it’s not so great when it is triggered all the time. Extra cortisol and stress hormones can disrupt your hormones and cause your body to neglect the nonessential aspects of life (like reproduction and thyroid balance).

One of the easiest ways to manage these stress hormone levels in your body is by supporting healthy adrenals. Click here for my favorite adrenal-support supplement to help your body handle stress in a healthy way (and boost your energy while you’re at it!) >>

Having self-care rituals is also super important to beating chronic stress.

• Do some exercise every day, whether that is yoga, walking, jogging, hiking, or a traditional gym workout.

• Take stock of your life and don’t be afraid to let go of the things (or people) go that are weighing you down.

• Practice meditation, mindfulness, or prayer.

• Use stress-relieving essential oils like Clary Sage, Lavender, Roman Chamomile, and Wild Orange.

• Do something that brings you joy every day. 

Even small steps toward caring for yourself can make a world of difference in your health!

#5 – Nutritional Deficiencies and Sensitivities

The food you eat is either contributing to or calming your inflammation. There is no middle ground here.

Gut inflammation is the root of a lot of the problems in other areas of your body as well. If you are missing key vitamins or minerals, are eating inflammatory foods (especially grains, dairy, sugar, caffeine, and alcohol), or have some food sensitivities that you aren’t paying attention to, it could be contributing to your overall symptoms.

The biggest deficiencies that contribute to overall inflammation are vitamin D, magnesium, and B vitamins. These 3 essential nutrients work together to support liver detoxification, hormone balance, energy, and so much more. If you’re missing them, inflammation is going to run the show (because your body just can’t keep up without the building blocks it needs to thrive). Click here to get my recommended supplements to quickly and easily correct these deficiencies.

#6 – Emotional Trauma

Unresolved emotional trauma could be impeding your ability to heal. Is it keeping you awake at night, keeping your body from recharging? Is your pent up trauma driving you into the ground? If so, it’s time to take steps to heal your body.

When I look back at my health history, every event is punctuated by some traumatic event. But remember that what is traumatic for you might not be traumatic for someone else.

It’s time to invest in some quality, individualized self-care.

Self-care means giving yourself permission to pause. Self-care means simply taking a moment for yourself today. It doesn’t have to be complicated, but it is vital for your survival.

Healing yourself emotionally is a vital first step to healing your body physically. Research shows that emotional trauma suffered even during childhood contributes to greater inflammation as an adult. (2) Self-care and taking time for emotional healing is not selfish. It’s what you need to get well.

I want to share one of my favorite essential oil blends for emotional healing with you. This is my go-to blend for reducing stress, balancing your mood, and releasing emotions that don’t serve you. Protect yourself from negativity and boost your emotional healing by having this blend nearby.

The Bottom Line

Most of the chronic diseases we are facing today can be traced back to extra inflammation. Hormone disorders in particular are greatly affected by it. That’s why I wrote The Essential Oils Hormone Solution. I want to put the power in your hands to achieve whole-body healing with natural methods that work. It will equip you with tools to heal your body, mind, and emotions to help keep inflammation from taking over your body and life.

If you are looking for a healing breakthrough, removing inflammation is the best place to start. When you participate in my 14-Day Hormone Detox, you will experience powerful gut, liver, and hormone healing because of the lifestyle and diet changes I recommend.

What makes this program so special is the powerful combination of food elimination, self-care using essential oils, and supplementation to reset your hormones and, in turn, kickstart your healing journey to find relief from your symptoms!

Brain fog, belly fat, cravings, fatigue, and more will all go out the window when you take the time to reset. Click here to get started with your Hormone Detox today!

References:
1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3569681/
2. https://www.nature.com/articles/mp201567