How to Reduce Inflammation With Simple Diet Changes

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A poor diet can lead to a multitude of chronic diseases of which dietary factors are often the leading cause. Diseases such as arthritis, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, asthma, metabolic syndrome, and more, often coexist with chronic inflammation. Medication can help manage inflammation and sometimes medication is necessary, but if pain and immobility caused by inflammation can be controlled, or at least reduced by dietary changes, why not give it a shot? There is a great deal of evidence showing positive dietary changes can have a significant positive impact on inflammation.

Pro-inflammatory Foods to Avoid

First, I’m going to focus on foods that are known to increase inflammation. It may not come as a surprise that many pro-inflammatory foods are foods we already know to avoid, but it’s difficult because they’re so tasty! Foods that may increase inflammation:

• Red and processed meats (beef, pork, lamb, bacon, sausage, deli meats)
• Refined carbohydrates (white bread, white rice, candy, desserts)
• Sugar-sweetened beverages
• Deep-fried foods
• Butter
• Beer and Liquor

Of course, like always, you never have to completely avoid a food (unless you a have a medical condition or personal belief that says otherwise). Moderation is key! However, it’s always good to strive for improvements.

Anti-inflammatory Eating Pattern

There is not one specific anti-inflammatory “diet” but rather many anti-inflammatory foods that can make up an eating pattern. The Mediterranean eating pattern is one of the most well-researched diet that has shown to reduce inflammation and prevalence of chronic diseases. The principles of the Mediterranean diet are:

• High intake of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, and spices
• Olive oil as an important fat source
• Moderate intake of fish and seafood
• Low-moderate intake of poultry, eggs, and dairy
• Rare intake of meats and sweets
• Wine in moderation
• Water often

Even small changes like having fish instead of beef once a week or including one more serving of fruits or vegetables/ day can help. An increase in any two components of the Mediterranean diet resulted in a significant (25% reduction) in cardiovascular disease and other chronic diseases.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids vs. Omega-6

In general, omega-6’s are pro-inflammatory and omega-3’s are anti-inflammatory. A ratio of 1:4 of omega-3 to omega-6 consumption is desirable, however, the American diet provides a ratio closer to 1:15.

Generally, pro-inflammatory omega-6’s:

• Corn oil
• Most vegetable oils

Anti-inflammatory omega-3’s:

• Cold-water fish (salmon, tuna, trout)
• Flax, hemp, and chia seeds
• Walnuts

Phytochemicals

Phytochemicals are biologically active plant compounds and have a variety of positive effects on the management and development of inflammation from chronic diseases. Phytochemicals contain many subclasses; for simplicity I will focus on the flavonoids which have shown to provide cardioprotective effects with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory functions. For example quercetin is well-studied and exhibits direct antioxidant effects. Many sources of these phytochemicals exist and generally increasing plant consumption (fruits and vegetables) will increase potential benefits from these compounds. A brief list of foods containing flavonoids and other phytochemicals that fight inflammation:

• olives (olive oil)
• green leafy vegetables
• cranberries
• green tea
• wine
• grapes
• cocoa
• citrus fruits
• berries
• legumes (soybeans, peas, beans)

Finally, I want to emphasis that consuming excess amounts of any of the foods talked about is not advised and that a well-balanced, diverse eating pattern is always key. Small, positive dietary changes will become habitual overtime, and have the potential to greatly improve quality of life.

Check out this doctor and dietitian-approved anti-inflammatory handout to help you remember the info talked about in the post! —>

References

1.Gropper SS, Smith JL. Advanced Nutrition and Human Metabolism. 7 ed. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning; 2018

2.Escott-Stump, S. Nutrition and Diagnosis-Related Care. 8 ed. Philadelphia, PA. Wolters Kluwer; 2015.

3.Kohatsu, W. Antiinflammatory Diet. In: Integrative Medicine. 4 ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2018: 869-877.e4.

P.S. Here’s the jasmine green tea I’m currently hooked on. It goes well with a dash of sugar and half and half :). (This is an affiliate link and I will earn a commission on any purchases made through this link)