𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐋𝐀𝐌𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍: 𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐄𝐒𝐒𝐄𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐎𝐃𝐒 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐊𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐒𝐋𝐎𝐖𝐋𝐘

 

What is Inflammation?

Simply consider inflammation as your body's natural response to protect itself against harm. 

There are two types: acute and chronic. 

■ Acute Inflammation 

You're probably more familiar with the acute type, which occurs when you bang your knee or cut your finger. Your immune system dispatches an army of white blood cells to surround and protect the area, creating visible redness and swelling. The process works similarly if you have an infection like the flu or pneumonia. So in these settings, inflammation is essential—without it, injuries could fester and simple infections could be deadly.

■ Chronic inflammation

But chronic inflammation can also occur in response to other unwanted substances in the body, such as toxins from cigarette smoke or an excess of fat cells (especially fat in the belly area). Inside arteries, inflammation helps kick off atherosclerosis—the build-up of fatty, cholesterol-rich plaque. Your body perceives this plaque as abnormal and foreign, so it attempts to wall off the plaque from the flowing blood. But if that wall breaks down, the plaque may rupture. The contents then mingle with blood, forming a clot that blocks blood flow. These clots are responsible for the majority of heart attacks and most strokes. Science has proven that chronic, low-grade inflammation can turn into a silent killer that contributes to cardiovascular disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes and other conditions.

Measuring inflammation

A simple blood test called the hsCRP test can measure C-reactive protein (CRP), which is a marker for inflammation, including arterial inflammation. Nearly 25 years ago, Harvard researchers found that men with higher CRP levels—approximately 2 milligrams per liter (mg/L) or greater—had three times the risk of heart attack and twice the risk of stroke as men with little or no chronic inflammation. They also found that people with the greatest degree of arterial inflammation benefited the most from aspirin, a drug that helps prevent blood clots and also damps down inflammation.

Inflammation & Processed Foods

Processed foods and inflammation are closely linked and consuming diets high in inflammatory foods negatively affect your system from your skin health to your blood sugar levels. 

Conversely, taking meals rich with whole foods which are nutrients powerhouses, help reduce inflammation throughout your body system. 

By cutting back on processed foods, you’ll be taking an important step towards combating systemic inflammation and increasing your body immunity to fight off attacks that have come to kill you.

What are Processed Foods?

Processed foods are food products that have been transformed into something new through series of chemical fortifications in a single manufacturing process.

They often contain added sugar, salt, fat, flavorings, colorings, taste improvers, preservatives, risers, etc, and many other additives that can negatively affect your health. 

Important to note that processed foods are high in calories but low in nutrients.

Some examples of processed food include fried chicken from a fast-food restaurant, soda, beers, canned fruit packed in syrup, and frozen meals sold at grocery stores. Processed foods are cheaper to produce than whole foods such as fruits and vegetables.

Common Foods That Cause Inflammation

- Processed meat

Research has linked excessive consumption of processed meats to inflammatory diseases like cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and more. Reducing or eliminating processed meats from your diet can help reduce inflammation. Choose fresh foods whenever possible instead. A healthier way to enjoy protein-rich meals is by consuming fresh grass-fed beef,  lean proteins like chicken and fish. These foods have a wide variety of nutrients, including omega-3 fatty acids, which may protect against heart disease and certain cancers.

- Sugar - Processed Foods Have Hidden Sugar Content

Processed foods contain a lot of hidden sugar, which can lead to insulin spikes and cause inflammation (insulin resistance and Type 2 diabetes). Both conditions result in chronically elevated levels of inflammation, which can lead to all sorts of serious health issues. The key to avoiding these problems is moderating your intake of processed food.

Try to replace processed food with healthy alternatives such as fresh vegetables, fruits, nuts, and other whole foods that don’t contain added sugar or other harmful ingredients.

- Artificial Trans Fats

Trans fats cause inflammation in our bodies. There are two types of trans fats: naturally occurring (found in animal fat) and artificial (mostly vegetable oil).  Naturally occurring trans fats are okay in small amounts. On the other hand, trans fats created by partially hydrogenating vegetable oils, like margarine, are pure poison. Artificial trans fats promote inflammation, which leads to heart disease, cancer and dementia. Removing processed foods from your diet will decrease your body’s exposure to these nasty toxins.

Processed Food Can Cause Gut Issues

The gut is where 70% of your immune system exists, so if it’s out of whack, you have a hard time fighting off inflammation. Since processed foods have little-to-no nutritional value, your body reacts to it by releasing pro-inflammatory cytokines —chemical messengers that cause allergic reactions. 

Eventually this will wreak havoc on your immune system. This type of inflammation is linked to conditions like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), skin problems, autoimmune diseases, and even cancer. With such grave consequences, it’s worth eliminating all processed foods from your diet. 

Gut health naturally can be enhanced through proper nutrition and lifestyle choices.

NOTE: If you can’t recognize or pronounce an ingredient, put it back on the shelf. Make sure all ingredients are as close as possible to their natural state before you make payment when you go food shopping. 

Foods That Fight Inflammation

Natural anti-inflammatory foods can help you regulate your body’s inflammation response. These include healthy fats, like avocados and olive oil, as well as antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables, such as blueberries, cherries, raspberries, acai berries (and other dark berries), artichokes, turmeric (Curcuma longa), tomatoes and strawberries. Consuming omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil supplements may also be beneficial in helping reduce inflammation

We advise you make natural foods 90% of your meals to live and thrive.