system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: Why do you want to keep swelling down?

If swelling is a natural response from your body, why stop it?

I just broke my hand and my hands pretty swollen and everyone's saying keep the swelling down. Why?
gpt
This is a classic example of short term vs long term gain. 

The body's natural swelling occurs when macrophages (a type of white blood cell) concentrate at an injury site and absorb parts of broken cells. This process pokes small holes in the surrounding muscle tissue which allows fluid to enter and creates swelling. 

However the macrophages also introduce a growth hormone that speeds the healing process, so by reducing swelling you are preventing the muscle tissue from being fully broken down (thus allowing it to be used temporarily), but also lengthening the healing process. 

The current accepted best practice is to reduce swelling as much as possible if the injured muscle needs to be used in the near future, but to allow a limited amount of swelling (still controlled with RICE) if the injury can be completely rested for a few days.