C-Reactive Protein is a protein that is found in the body.  High levels of this protein is an indication of inflammation.

Chronic inflammation is not good for the body and can play a negative role in many disease processes such as heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer, diabetes, and arthritis. One of U.C. Berkeley Wellness Letter Article says "some researchers now believe that low-grade inflammation is associated with everything from heart disease and diabetes to Alzheimer’s and arthritis, and may even be the cause of most chronic diseases. ... Inflammation was implicated in cancer many years ago."

The back jacket of the book The Inflammation Syndrome shows a quote by Dr. Fred Pescatore that reads "Many of our most debilitating diseases can be traced to an inflammatory cause."

There is the C-Reactive Protein (CRP) test that can measure your level of C-Reactive protein and hence your level of inflammation. In particular, the "high sensitivity" C-Reactive Protein test (hs-CRP) is sensitive to even low levels of the protein. The difference between the regular CRP and the hs-CRP is that they are sensitive to different range levels of the protein. The hs-CRP is sensitive to the lower range amounts of the protein.

A WebMD article has charts showing what CRP levels are considered normal. The article says that "High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) measures very low amounts of CRP in the blood. This test may be helpful in predicting your risk for heart problems, especially when it is combined with total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol tests."

The C-Reactive protein test was one of the four tests listed in Chapter 10 "Four Medical Tests That Can Save Your Brain" of the book The Better Brain Book.

The test is relatively simply involving a blood draw to be analyzed.  You can learn more about the test at LabTestOnline.org.

In the video, hear cardiologist Stuart Seides of the Washington Hospital Center explains how seeing a high C-Reactive protein may predict whether someone has a greater chance of having an heart attack or stroke. The Jupiter study was designed to take a group of patients with normal cholesterol but high CRP and see if treating them with a statin drugs (such as Crestor) would have a benefit. And the study indicates that it does.

So on the basis of this context, you can hear in the video how Dr. Seides answers the question as to which category of people should get their CRP checked.

In the next video, Dr. Ronald Klatz talks about the benefit of knowing your CRP number in addition to your cholesterol numbers.

Dr. Ronald Klatz also mentions that anti-oxidant vitamins such as C, E, A, selenium can lower one's CRP.

Virginia Hopkins Health Watch article says Vitamin E, Coenzyme Q10, Vitamin C, Krill oil, fruits and vegetables, and even small amounts of dark chocolate can reduce CRP.

In the video, Dr. Jamie Phillips tells of a study showing 1000 mg of vitamin C can reduces CRP levels.

Lifestyle changes such as exercise and healthy diet also lowers CRP. 

Article on healthline.com says "One of the newest risk factors is C-reactive protein (CRP); one of the oldest preventive tactics is exercise." 

Medscape article concludes that "a combined aerobic and resistance exercise training program may serve as a promising therapeutic modality resulting in a decline of serum concentration of CRP".

Hydrogenated vegetable oils in baked goods and chips as well as diets high in sugar increases inflammation.  Anti-inflammatory foods includes fruits and vegetables, fish, green tea, extra virgin olive oil as well as other listed in an article in metabolismadvice.com.

To learn more about the Jupiter study, see article linked here.

There is an entire website at CRPHealth.com devoted to information about C-Reactive protein.

Date of this article: Article written October 2009.