The Inflammation-Free Diet: What It Is and Why You Need It

What is Happening During Inflammation?

Pain or swelling due to a cut or a bump is due to a regular body process known as inflammation. Acute inflammation occurs to protect the body from infection and severe injuries. Chronic inflammation, on the other hand, is the cause of many diseases such as stroke, heart disease, cancer and arthritis.


Lab Tests for Inflammation: C-Reactive Protein

To find out if your body is experiencing inflammation, see your doctor for any one of several laboratory blood tests that are able to screen for inflammation. One of the major markers for inflammation is called the CRP (C-reactive protein). It indicates that the higher the level of CRP, the greater the inflammation.


Causes of Chronic Inflammation

Causes of chronic inflammation vary as it may be due to viral, bacterial and fungal infections, food allergies, exposure to toxic wastes and lack of exercise. However, many doctors and scientists agree that inflammation is caused by lack of proper nutrition. Fortunately, there are certain foods that reduce the risk of inflammation in the body. These foods are incorporated into the regular diet resulting in an inflammation-free diet.


What an Inflammation-Free Diet Does

The goal of the inflammation-free diet is to reduce current inflammation and to decrease the risk of future inflammation. The inflammation-free diet reduces sugar, especially the refined ones. Consumption of processed foods is also limited, as well as gluten-containing grains and wheat flours. Often, inflammation is caused by food allergies. In this case, an elimination diet is followed to rule out the particular food that is causing the inflammation. Common allergy-causing foods are dairy products, corn, eggs and nuts.


The inflammation-free diet gets rid of unhealthy fats from the diet. This is very important to overweight and obese individuals who need to lose weight. Instead of foods high in carbohydrates, saturated fats, trans fats, and sugar, the inflammation-free diet increases the consumption of antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables.


Foods to Include In an Inflammation-Free Diet

Plant-Based Foods

The best choices for vegetables are the leafy green vegetables like spinach, Brussels sprouts, and broccoli. Other good sources are yams, collard greens, peas, lentils, carrots, and cabbage. Meanwhile, the best source for fruits are cherries, acai berries, cranberries, pink grapefruit and pineapples.

Healthy Fats

The fats that the body needs should be coming from foods with healthy fats such as salmon, mackerel, halibut, trout and tuna. Lean meats such as turkey, sirloin steak, prime rib and eggs may be consumed as long as they are organic and are have had the fat and skin trimmed away. The oils that may be used include almond oil and extra virgin olive oil.


Nuts and seeds such as almonds, sunflower seeds and walnuts should also be included in the inflammation-free diet. It is also important to incorporate foods or supplements rich in Omega-3 such as fish oil, hemp oil and flaxseeds. Also, onions and garlic are rich in antioxidants that fight off inflammation in the body and keep the heart healthy.


Fiber

Increase the intake of daily fiber. Include in your regular diet along with fruits and vegetables, fiber-rich foods such as brown rice, beans, sweet potatoes, and whole grains. Examples of whole grains are quinoa, barley, whole wheat and rye. Always remember to plenty of water each day to flush out toxins. There is no one amount of water that's right for each person. You'll know you've had enough water when you don't feel thirsty throughout the day and your urine is almost clear, not dark yellow. If you wait until you're thirsty, you've waited too long to drink. Great beverages for people on the anti-inflammatory diet are green tea, filtered water and other herbal teas.