Immune Dysfunction
Allergies and autoimmune diseases leave our immune system in a hyper-stimulated state. Redness, swelling, discharge, itching and pain are all typical symptoms of these conditions, and they indicate that there is a lot of inflammation in your body. It is important to work on strengthening your immune system, as chronic inflammation like this wrecks havock on your body, and generates an enormous amount of free radicals. Your body is in a constant state of stress if it is always battling with allergies or an autoimmune condition. The chemicals released into the bloodstream of people who suffer with allergies or autoimmune diseases include cytokines, prostaglandins, leukotrienes and thromboxanes. These substances promote inflammation of the artery walls, and make blood clots much more likely.
If you suffer with an allergy such as eczema, hay fever, sinusitis, or an autoimmune disease such as rheumatoid arthritis, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis or lupus, you may be much more susceptible to heart disease than people who don’t suffer from one of these conditions. Various studies have shown that people with lupus and rheumatoid arthritis are at much greater risk of heart disease. People with Systemic Lupus Erythematosis (SLE) are between 7 and 50 times more likely to have a heart attack than the general population. This increased risk is independent of traditional risk factors such as high cholesterol and smoking.

High Blood Pressure
This is a well known classic risk factor for heart disease and stroke because it places greater stress on your arteries and in time weakens them. However, we now knew that hypertension promotes inflammation in the body. Angiotensin 2 is a type of protein made in the body that raises blood pressure by causing constriction of the blood vessels, as well as sodium retention by ne kidneys. Many common blood pressure medications work by inhibiting angiotensin converting enzyme, the enzyme responsible for producing angiotensin 2. It has recently been discovered that angiotensin 2 is also capable of causing inflammation to the inner lining of our arteries (endothelium). It promotes the production of free radicals by the cells that line our arteries, and also makes these cells release sticky molecules that make it more likely for LDL cholesterol and other substances to bind to them.
We also know that if you have high blood levels of C-reactive protein, you are more likely to develop high blood pressure because CRP reduces nitric oxide production by the endothelial cells, (cells lining the artery walls). Nitric oxide dilates air blood vessels and reduces inflammation inside them.

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