Foods That Fight Inflammation

What is Inflammation?

Inflammation is a natural and essential process that your body uses to defend itself from infections and heal injured cells and tissues. It can be a good thing. But, sometimes it’s possible to have too much of a good thing and that is what we call chronic inflammation.

Chronic Inflammation

Chronic inflammation is a slow-burning and smoldering type of fire. This type of inflammation can exist throughout your whole body and that means that the symptoms aren’t localized to one particular area that needs it.

Chronic inflammation is often invisible without immediate or serious symptoms, but over the long-term it’s been linked to many chronic diseases such as:

Acne, eczema, and psoriasis
Allergies and asthma
Autoimmune diseases (arthritis, type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, lupus)
Cancer
Chronic pain
Gastrointestinal disorders (Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis)
Heart disease and stroke
Lung diseases (emphysema)
Mental illnesses (anxiety, depression)
Metabolic diseases (type 2 diabetes)
Neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s)

How Does Chronic Inflammation begin?

It may start acutely—from an infection or injury—and then instead of shutting off, it becomes persistent. Chronic low-grade inflammation can also occur with exposure to chemicals (e.g., tobacco) or radiation, consuming an unhealthy diet or too much alcohol, not being very physically active, feeling stressed or socially isolated, and excess body fat stores.

Let’s break down what we can do to put out those slow-burning, smoldering fires with foods that fight inflammation.

Nutrition and lifestyle tips for reducing chronic inflammation

Below you will find several lifestyle changes—including a healthy diet—that can be very helpful to prevent and scale down inflammation to reduce its many damaging effects on the body.

1. Enjoy foods that fight inflammation

Increase your intake of fruits and vegetables, whole grains (brown rice, oats, bran), nuts (almonds), seeds, fish, poultry, legumes (beans, lentils), and healthy oils (olive oil)

Pay particular attention to foods high in antioxidant polyphenols, including colorful plants such as berries, cherries, plums, red grapes, avocados, onions, carrots, beets, turmeric, green tea, and dark green leafy vegetables like spinach and kale

Omega-3 fats can help to reduce pain and clear up inflammation and are found in salmon, trout, mackerel, soy, walnuts, and flax

High fiber foods (whole grains, vegetables, fruits, legumes) encourage friendly gut microbes to help reduce inflammation

Avoid charring foods when cooking at high temperatures

Limit inflammatory foods such as red and processed meats (lunch meats, hot dogs, hamburgers), fried foods (fries), unhealthy fats (shortening, lard), sugary foods and drinks (sodas, candy, sports drinks), refined carbohydrates (white bread, cookies, pie), and ultra-processed foods (microwaveable dinners, baked goods)

2. Be physically active

Regular exercise reduces inflammation over the long-term, so try to get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise (brisk walking) per week; about 20-30 minutes per day

To this add two or more strength training sessions (using weights or resistance bands) each week

3. Get enough restful sleep

Disrupted sleep has recently been linked to increased inflammation and atherosclerosis (the buildup of plaque in the vessels that’s linked with heart disease), so aim for 7-9 hours of restful sleep every night to help the body heal and repair

Tips for better sleep: try to maintain a regular sleep-wake schedule every day, get exposure to natural daylight earlier in the day, avoid caffeine later in the day, cut out screens an hour before bedtime, and create a relaxing nighttime routine

4. Quit smoking and limit alcohol

Quitting smoking can help reduce inflammation and several other health concerns by reducing exposure to toxins that are directly linked to inflammation

Limit your alcohol intake to no more than one or two drinks per day

5. Manage your stress

Engage in relaxing stress-reducing activities such as mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), deep breathing, meditation, yoga, or tai chi

6. Be social

New research suggests that feeling socially isolated is linked with higher levels of inflammation, so reach out to family and friends (or make new ones)

7. See your doctor and dentist

Get your cholesterol and blood lipids tested because high amounts of “bad” LDL cholesterol is linked to inflammation and negatively affects your vessels

You can request a blood test to measure levels of CRP (C-reactive protein) which is a marker of inflammation (this test is also used to check your risk of developing heart disease)

If your gums bleed when you brush or floss, this may be a sign of gum inflammation (gingivitis), so ramp up your oral hygiene and see your dentist

How do I get started with foods that fight inflammation?

Chronic, long-term, low-level inflammation is linked with many health issues. The first approach to preventing and improving this is through food and lifestyle changes. Start by focusing on adding colorful fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds, and fish to your diet. Then layer in lifestyle upgrades like physical activity, restful sleep, and stress management.

These changes can be integrated into your day-to-day practices. First try adding one additional fruit or vegetable to your day. Then, several times a day at each snack or meal. For inspiration, try recipes from my Anti-inflammatory Meal Plan.

Looking for additional support?

If you’d like help with creating and implementing a sustainable meal plan with foods that fight inflammation, book a discovery call with me today to see how my programs can help you get started. Contact Me