Inflammation continues to be a growing focus of research, and rightfully so! After all, chronic inflammation has been linked to causing the majority of diseases including Alzheimers disease, arthritis, cardiovascular disease, cancer, obesity, and Parkinson’s disease. However, it is important for you to know that while many foods trigger inflammation within your body there is also a long list of foods that protect you from inflammation. Therefore, tailoring your diet to discern between these foods is essential to your overall health.

Inflammation triggers: Foods to avoid

Although many foods are capable of triggering or prolonging inflammation, certain foods are much worse than others. For this reason, you should avoid the following:

• Foods or drinks high in sugar (including high fructose corn syrup)
• Processed carbohydrates
• Meat and dairy products filled with unhealthy fats
• Refined vegetable oils containing trans fats

In addition to these harmful foods, lack of exercise, stress, tobacco use, and alcohol abuse not only increase the amount of inflammation in your body, but also prolong the amount of time that inflammation remains in your body.

Inflammation eliminators: Foods to eat

As always, all hope is not lost when it comes to removing or preventing inflammation. As it turns out, several foods specialise in protecting you from inflammation. They achieve this by blocking either the pathways that produce inflammation or the pathways inflammation uses to cause chronic disease. So, here are some inflammation-fighting foods that you should add to your plate daily:

• Fish oil (omega-3 fatty acids)
• Flaxseed
• Garlic
• Ginger (sulfur)
• Green tea (polyphenol antioxidants)
• Hemp seed
• Peppers (capsaicin)
• Salmon (omega-3 fatty acids)
• Sardines (omega-3 fatty acids)
• Turmeric (curcumin)
• Olive oil (oleic acid)
• Walnuts

Final Remedies

It is important you understand that inflammation is indeed a silent killer. This means that you can have inflammation building up inside your body without experiencing any symptoms. Therefore, start monitoring your diet to make sure you consume foods that fight inflammation as opposed to promoting it. Also, exercise regularly, manage stress, and get plenty of sleep. These additional steps are essential to developing overall health while strengthening your immune system. And remember to ‘Ask a Naturopath’ for more advice.