Easing Chronic Inflammation with Healthy Food Choices

When you see the word “inflammation”, you probably think of the redness around a recent cut, or the pain and soreness after an injury, and you’d be right. Acute inflammation is a normal, natural response to an injury, irritation or infection in the body and is confined to that area. Another type of inflammation—chronic inflammation—spreads to other areas of the body and is responsible for many serious health conditions. How do you know if chronic inflammation is a problem for you, and what can you do about it?

Increasing numbers of healthcare professionals are recognizing chronic inflammation as the cause of many serious, chronic diseases such as asthma, autoimmune diseases, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and Alzheimer's, along with any health condition that ends with “itis.” Nowadays, most Americans can claim to have at least one of these issues. Inflammation is directly related to obesity, and plays a major role in the aging process.

How can you be sure you’re experiencing chronic inflammation? One step you can take is to get your C-reactive protein (CRP) level tested. C-reactive protein is produced by the liver; an elevated level indicates systemic inflammation in the body. Ask your doctor about having the test done. If your test results indicate inflammation, your doctor may recommend an over-the-counter or prescription anti-inflammatory drug; however, there are natural ways to reduce inflammation without the side effects of medications.
Factors that contribute to the buildup of chronic inflammation over time include stress, lack of sleep, exposure to environmental toxins, and injuries and chronic conditions themselves; however, the foods we eat play a key role in whether our bodies produce more anti-inflammatory or pro-inflammatory hormones.

Our bodies naturally manufacture both anti-inflammatory and pro-inflammatory compounds.By switching to an anti-inflammatory diet consisting of healthy whole foods, you can decrease inflammation, ease the pain and discomfort associated with it, and even reverse or reduce the symptoms associated with many of the diseases linked to chronic inflammation.

The Anti-Inflammatory Diet

The Standard American Diet (SAD) is the main factor in producing chronic inflammation. Here are the basics of an anti-inflammatory diet:

Processed foods, foods high in sugar, and junk food all cause your body to increase its pro-inflammatory response. Hidden food allergies can contribute to low-grade chronic inflammation, so you’ll want to choose fresh, whole foods rather than processed foods. Eat a wide variety of brightly colored fruits and vegetables, including choices that are red and purple, green, orange, yellow, and white, every day to get a wide range of antioxidants that act as natural anti-inflammatories. Our bodies are naturally slightly alkaline; however, most Americans eat a highly acidic diet of too much sugar, meat and dairy, which causes our bodies to become acidic. Over-acidity contributes to chronic inflammation and disease in general, so ensuring that naturally alkaline vegetables and fruits make up approximately 50% of your daily diet will help to keep you healthy.

A diet high in sugar and the wrong types of carbohydrates will also increase abnormal inflammation. Eating sugars of all types and refined grains (because they are reduced to sugars quickly in the digestive process) causes a rapid rise in blood sugar, which leads to elevated insulin levels. Insulin is an important hormone that controls blood sugar and energy usage and storage, but excessive amounts will create a pro-inflammatory effect. Choose whole grains rather than breads and cold cereals. Limit added sugars in your diet, which means those that would be in addition to the sugars naturally found in fruits, vegetables, and grains.

A diet with too much of the wrong kinds of fat, or that is too low in fat, will cause our cells to produce more pro-inflammatory hormones. Our body requires some healthy fats (20-30% of total daily calories) to maintain optimal health. Sources of healthy fats include olive oil and flax seed oil, coldwater fish, raw nuts and seeds, and avocadoes. Fats to be avoided include trans fatty acids (from hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils), margarine, lard and refined oils. Although we require a small amount of saturated fat in order to remain healthy, excessive amounts increase abnormal inflammation. Both red meats and dairy foods are high in saturated fats, so you’ll want to limit your consumption of them.

Whether you are currently experiencing acute inflammation as a result of an injury, surgery, or a severe bout of allergies, or you have any condition associated with chronic inflammation as a result of your current diet and lifestyle choices, you can benefit from following an anti-inflammatory diet. If you simply want to prevent chronic inflammation from becoming a problem, you can follow a less strict version of the diet, eating a healthy diet of anti-inflammatory foods a majority of the time.

Reducing chronic inflammation is a key to preventing and reversing many of the health issues that have become so common, as well as slowing the aging process and keeping us healthy, youthful and vibrant throughout our life.