Everywhere we turn today, health experts are talking about our need to cool the smoldering fire of hidden inflammation in our bodies to help prevent obesity and chronic disease, but what exactly is inflammation and why are we all so inflamed in the first place?
What is Inflammation?
There are two types of inflammation. The first is Acute Inflammation, which is a healthy bodily function and can be critical to our survival, and the second is Chronic Inflammation which is not normal and can wreak havoc on your health.
Acute Inflammation
Acute Inflammation is our body’s natural, healing response to things like injuries, infections, and toxins. Think of when you cut your finger and it turns red, warm, swollen and painful – that’s acute inflammation doing its job, triggering your immune system to send white blood cells and chemicals to the area to promote repair. Acute inflammation is short-lived, usually resolving in a matter of days and can be critical for your survival.[1]
Chronic Inflammation
The second type of inflammation is Chronic Inflammation, and in most cases, this is when acute inflammation does not resolve and continues for months or even years. In this case, your body is bombarded with a continuous onslaught of inflammatory compounds that can damage tissues and organs.
Unlike acute inflammation, chronic inflammation can be harder to detect and can stay hidden for a long time. Some signs of chronic inflammation include brain fog, fatigue, pain, digestive irregularity, frequent infections, and mood disorders. Longer-term chronic inflammation is considered a contributor to almost every chronic disease including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disease, Alzheimer’s disease and cancer.[2]
What causes chronic inflammation and why is it so ubiquitous?
Chronic inflammation is so prevalent today largely due to our modern lifestyle. According to Dr. Mark Hyman, “The three biggest drivers of inflammation are all lifestyle factors – gut health, diet and chronic stress.”[3]
With the common Standard American Diet, our bodies struggle to recognize and digest the highly refined and processed foods laden with sugar and toxic chemicals, and many people do not take in, digest, absorb and assimilate the vitamins and minerals their bodies need. The general insufficiency of whole foods and diversity of foods in our modern diets negatively impacts our gut flora which in turn also promotes gut-lining deficiency and inflammation.
To add even more kindling to our smoldering fire, our modern culture accepts and promotes a high-stress lifestyle, devalues restorative sleep, and promotes a sedentary lifestyle, all of which have a pro-inflammatory effect on our bodies.
What Can We Do to Cool Our Inflammation?
So, if you are likely to be inflamed just by living in our modern world, how can you protect yourself and reduce inflammation? It sounds challenging, but really there are many simple things you can do that can have a big impact. A good place to start is to add in more foods and lifestyle habits to support your gut bacteria and digestion such as:
- Nutrient-dense whole, organic foods including lots of colorful fruits and vegetables full of polyphenols such as berries, greens and cruciferous vegetables
- Prebiotic foods such as onions, garlic, asparagus, artichokes and apples
- Fermented foods such as sauerkraut, kimchi and miso
- Pasture and humanely raised animal protein free of hormones and antibiotics and wild-caught fish high in omega 3’s such as salmon, mackerel, anchovies, sardines and herring.
- Healthy fats from foods such as walnuts, flax seeds, chia seeds, ghee, olives, and avocado[4]
- Staying hydrated with water and herbal teas
- Avoiding toxins by replacing household and personal care products with toxin-free options recommended by EWG.
- Making daily movement and consistent strength exercise a priority
- Implementing stress resiliency practices such as meditation[5], yoga, and journaling
- Creating daily routines to harmonize your circadian rhythms and support restorative sleep
When you start to add in healthier food and lifestyle practices, it makes it easier to crowd out the unhealthy ones and you will find yourself moving to a place of improved wellness.
Getting There with the Support of Health Coaching
Sometimes changing our diets and lifestyle habits seems too challenging and unrealistic, but everyone at every age can make some positive changes that will help improve their health and well-being. Every small step forward makes a difference, and health and wellness coaching can be tremendously helpful in getting started and achieving sustainable change.
If you would like help making positive changes to lower inflammation in your own body and improve your health and happiness by doing so, I am here to support and guide you every step of the way. Since we are all unique individuals, no one diet or daily routine works for everyone; together we will figure out and implement the foods and lifestyle habits that best support you.
References
https://www.marthastewart.com/2225101/reduce-chronic-inflammation
https://thechalkboardmag.com/how-to-deal-with-inflammation-functional-medicine/
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK556083/
[2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK493173/#:~:text=Chronic%20Inflammation-,Chronic%20inflammation%20is%20also%20referred%20to%20as%20slow%2C%20long%2Dterm,repair%20and%20overcome%20the%20damage.
[3] https://drhyman.com/blog/2021/12/13/podcast-ep461/
[4] https://www.uclahealth.org/news/eating-healthy-fats-has-many-benefits#:~:text=There%20is%20also%20growing%20evidence,of%20nutrients%20and%20immune%20function
[5] https://www.news-medical.net/news/20230117/Long-term-deep-meditation-may-help-to-regulate-the-gut-microbiome-for-better-health.aspx?_kx=aRyA8f_HPuBMkkIM3yinqsaCquitVKnJ0Ui4_srbrmE%3D.HKMsXE
