In the spirit of Thanksgiving and all the holiday food we will be consuming this holiday weekend, I was doing some research on Anti-Inflammatory drugs and all of sudden my stomach told me to go eat some dinner and then it hit me to search if foods can help reduce inflammation. I came across this article that explain which foods we all should eat or stay away from.
What is Inflammation?
Inflammation is defined as a localized reaction of tissue to irritation, injury, or infection. Symptoms of inflammation include pain, swelling, red coloration to the area, and sometimes loss of movement or function. We commonly think of inflammation as the painful component of arthritis. Inflammation is also a component of chronic diseases such as heart disease and strokes.
Avoid Pro-Inflammatory Foods
Pro-inflammatory foods will increase inflammation, increase your pain from the inflammation and may also raise your risk for chronic disease. Loading up on junk foods, high-fat meats, sugar and fast foods will increase inflammation in your body. This is partially due to the unhealthy fats used in preparing and processing these foods, especially trans fats and saturated fats.
Processed meats such as lunch meats, hot dogs and sausages contain chemicals such as nitrites that are associated with increased inflammation and chronic disease.
Saturated fats are also found in meats, dairy products and eggs. While all of these foods are important source of minerals and vitamins, you don't need the extra saturated fat. These foods also also contain fatty acids called arachidonic acid. While some arachidonic acid is essential for your health, too much arachidonic acid in the diet may make your inflammation worse. Be sure to choose low fat milk and cheese and lean cuts of meat, which will not promote inflammation.
Diets high in sugar have also been associated with inflammation, obesity and chronic disease such as diabetes. Eliminate high sugar foods such as sodas, soft drinks, pastries, pre-sweetened cereals and candy.
Choose Anti-inflammatory Foods
Fats and Oils
The right types of fats in your diet will impact pain and inflammation in a positive way. Omega-3 essential fatty acids are very powerful anti-inflammatory agents. They are found in cold water oily fish, walnuts, flax seeds, canola oil and pumpkin seeds. Adding omega-3 fatty acid supplements from flax oil or fish oil may also help reduce inflammation, just be sure to speak with a doctor or nutritionist before taking larger, therapeutic doses of any supplement, or follow label instructions.
Protein
Your body needs protein to build healthy body tissues. Good protein sources include lean poultry, fish and seafood, nuts, legumes and seeds. Red meats may trigger inflammation, so cut back on fatty red meats. When you do eat red meat, choose lean cuts of bison, venison and other game meats, or the lowest-fat cuts of beef, preferably grass-fed beef.
Soybeans, tofu, and soy milk are three great sources of soy proteins that may help to reduce your pain and inflammation.
Carbohydrates and Fiber
Most of your carbohydrates should come from whole grains, vegetables and fruits. The bread, cereal and pasta in your diet should be mostly be 100% whole grain products. Whole grains are excellent sources of fiber, and a high fiber diet will reduce your inflammation.
Choose green leafy vegetables, green and brightly colored vegetables and lots of fresh whole fruits. You should eat at least five and preferably more servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Green vegetables and whole fruits are also important as sources of dietary fiber.
Berries are also a great food choice, especially blueberries and strawberries which are packed with anti-inflammatory phytochemicals and anti-oxidants. The pigments in brightly colored fruits, vegetables and berries contain many phytochemicals that have anti-inflammatory properties. One example is quercetin, which is found in apple and red onion skins and has strong anti-inflammatory properties.
It was discussed in lecture this past week that altering one's daily life style can help with regulating chronic inflammation. We also agreed in class that in reality, it takes discipline and personal responsibility to conduct a routine that consists of the daily activities which helps a person reduce the risk of being diagnose with chronic inflammation. However, I commented that not everybody will take the necessary steps to alter their daily live activities to reduce the risk of chronic inflammation but maybe a person would be more willing to alter their daily diet? To be honest I think it depends on the each person, each person has their own beliefs to what is good for them and will do whatever makes he or she happy.
Are you a person who would be willing to alter your daily activities or alter your daily diet or both to help fight against being diagnose with chronic inflammation?
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I apologize I didnt attach the "sources" page
ReplyDeleteSources:
http://nutrition.about.com/od/dietsformedicaldisorders/a/antiinflamfood.htm
Watkins BA, Hannon K, Ferruzzi M, Li Y. "Dietary PUFA and flavonoids as deterrents for environmental pollutants." J Nutr Biochem. 2007 Mar;18(3):196-205.
Hodgson JM, Ward NC, Burke V, Beilin LJ, Puddey IB. "Increased lean red meat intake does not elevate markers of oxidative stress and inflammation in humans." J Nutr. 2007 Feb;137(2):363-7.
Lopez-Garcia E, Schulze MB, Fung TT, Meigs JB, Rifai N, Manson JE, Hu FB. "Major dietary patterns are related to plasma concentrations of markers of inflammation and endothelial dysfunction." Am J Clin Nutr. 2004 Oct;80(4):1029-35.
Farooqui AA, Horrocks LA, Farooqui T. "Modulation of inflammation in brain: a matter of fat." J Neurochem. 2007 Jan 25.
Panush RS, Veloso ML, Weiss S, Bielory L. "Mechanisms in adverse reactions to food. The joints and muscles." Allergy. 1995;50(20 Suppl):74-7.
Huang SM, Wu CH, Yen GC. "Effects of flavonoids on the expression of the pro-inflammatory response in human monocytes induced by ligation of the receptor for AGEs." Mol Nutr Food Res. 2006 Dec;50(12):1129-39.
Covas MI. "Olive oil and the cardiovascular system." Pharmacol Res. 2007 Jan 30.
Suter PM. "Positive effect of dietary soy in ESRD patients with systemic inflammation--correlation between blood levels of the soy isoflavones and the acute-phase reactants." Nephrol Dial Transplant. 2006 Aug;21(8):2239-46.
Fanti P, Asmis R, Stephenson TJ, Sawaya BP, Franke AA. "Positive effect of dietary soy in ESRD patients with systemic inflammation--correlation between blood levels of the soy isoflavones and the acute-phase reactants." Nephrol Dial Transplant. 2006 Aug;21(8):2239-46.
just to go along with our blog, I found this simple anti-inflammatory diet with the following items at http://www.dailyperricone.com/:
ReplyDelete1.) High-quality protein, like that found in fish, shellfish, poultry and tofu;
2.) Low-glycemic carbohydrates including colorful fresh fruits and vegetables and whole grains such as old-fashioned oatmeal, legumes such as beans and lentils
3.) Healthy fats, such as those found in cold water fish (especially wild Alaskan salmon, halibut, sardines, herring, anchovies, etc.), nuts, seeds, and olive oil
4.) 8 -10 glasses of pure spring water per day.
5.) Anti-oxidant rich beverages such as green tea
oops..typo..it was suppose to say "to go along with your blog"...sorry
ReplyDeleteDon’t forget after eating all that food you need to exercise. Exercising for at least 30 or more minutes a few times a week will help you naturally lose weight and reduce the amount of body weight putting pressure on your joints and ligaments. Less pressure means less inflammation in your body.
ReplyDeleteWow, it's great to know that there are actually lessons in the university that teach people about anti-inflammatory foods. I've also come across an article on anti-inflammatory foods that may be of interest to you.
ReplyDeleteI found these two website that list their top foods for anti-inflammatory. Whats in them that makes them useful and what types of food to avoid when mixing other foods together. I found them to be interesting hope you do too.
ReplyDeletehttp://theconsciouslife.com/top-10-anti-inflammatory-foods.htm
http://www.dlife.com/dLife/do/ShowContent/food_and_nutrition/top_10_anti_inflammatory_foods.html
In response to your questions "Are you a person who would be willing to alter your daily activities or alter your daily diet or both to help fight against being diagnose with chronic inflammation?" It is always nice to have a natural remedy, but as a person who has a chronic inflammatory condition, food and exercise etc only go so far in treatment and prevention; therefore, although these things do offer some anti-inflammatory benefits, if the change is not substantial it is hard to stick with the overall extreme monitoring of diet. Personally, I eat very healthy and have an active lifestyle, so I have been helped in this regard, but I find that having a very stringent diet based solely around anti-inflammatory foods did not offer any substantial improvements.
ReplyDeleteThis is an interesting set of foods to avoid for a reason I had not heard of, reducing inflammation. Perhaps the lesson learned is to eat a healthy diet in order to do our best to prevent the development of disease, even if they do not serve effectively as a treatment alone (in regard to Tanya C's comment).
ReplyDeleteI knew there were certain foods that had anti-inflammatory properites but did not know exactly how they contributed to the anti-inflammatory process. It is good to know that some of the foods that I enjoy are on that list.
ReplyDeleteI agree with earlier comments that diet can only do so much in regards to inflammation. I think there are far too many other factors, environmental and otherwise that contribute to the process of inflammation. For instance, look at environmental tobacco smoke(second hand smoke exposure) and air pollution.