1)
What is
Inflammation
Inflammation is a response to harmful stimuli including pathogens,
damaged cells or irritants. It is a
protective attempt by the organism to remove injurious stimuli and to initiate
the healing process. Don’t confuse it
with infection; caused by pathogens, Inflammation is rather the body’s response
to the pathogen itself. Inflammation is
necessary for wounds and infections to heal.
However, chronic inflammation has been shown to lead to diseases (i.e. hay
fever, periodontitis, atherosclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple
sclerosis, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and even cancer). Although inflammation can be both acute or
chronic, prolonged inflammation (Chronic) leads to a progressive shift in the
type of cells present at site of inflammation and is characterized by simultaneous
destruction and healing of tissue from inflammatory process.
Importantly, in our society where 55-65% of adults are overweight/obese,
excess weight, specifically in the omental area (surrounding the organs) has
been linked to increased inflammation, likely due to infiltrates in the liver
and other organs and the metabolic activity of the fat itself.
Evidence suggests that the diet that we consume can
influence our inflammatory pathways, either by increasing inflammation or increasing
anti-inflammation (i.e. decreasing inflammation).
2)
Foods that
increase inflammation (i.e. foods to limit).
Many foods have been implicated in increasing the body’s
inflammatory response, often because the body perceives them to be pathogens. Our gut cells evolved long before the onset
of agriculture, so many of the products of agriculture tend to elicit an
inflammatory response in many people.
- Bagels
- Breads, rolls, baked goods
- Candy, Cake, Cookies, Crackers
- Cereals (except old fashioned oatmeal)
- Cornstarch
- Corn bread & muffins
- Corn syrup
- Croissants, Doughnuts
- Egg rolls
- Fast food
- French Fries
- Fruit juices
- Fried foods
- Flour
- Granola
- Hard cheese (except for feta and grating cheeses, such as Romano and Parmesan)
- Honey
- Hot dogs
- Ice cream, frozen yogurt
- Jams, preserves
- Margarine
- Molasses
- Muffins
- Noodles
- Pancakes, Pastry
- Pie, Waffles
- Pita bread
- Pizza
- Pasta
- Popcorn
- Potatoes
- Pudding
- Relish
- Rice
- Sherbet
- Shortening
- Snack foods (i.e. potato chips, pretzels, corn chips, rice cake, etc.)
- Soda, Sugar
- Tacos, Tortillas
General rule is that the more highly processed a food is (i.e. refined
carbohydrates, saturated fats), the more it will increase inflammation via
cytokine release, so limit your exposure to processed foods.
Additionally, the fat from sick
animals (conventionally farmed) is linked to a host of inflammatory conditions
and other health challenges. So limit
your exposure to fat content from conventionally farmed animals.
Omega-6 fats are also pro-inflammatory. Rich sources include corn, safflower, sunflower,
cottonseed and soybean oils. These are essential
fats, but the optimal ratio between anti-inflammatory (omega-3 oils) and these
pro-inflammatory omega-6 oils is 1 part (omega-3):4 parts (omega-6). In North America, unless we are intentionally
choosing more omega-3 fats, we tend to consume closer to 1 part (omega-3):10-20
parts (omega-6). This obviously imbalances
the body’s inflammatory pathways to favor pro-inflammation processes. Over time, this can lead to diseases whose
etiologies are likely due to inflammatory pathways (mentioned above). It could also aggravate said conditions
(worsening symptoms).
3)
Foods that
decrease inflammation (i.e. foods to focus on).
On the contrary, there are many foods that have been shown
to reduce inflammation in the body. Many
of these food items are those that gut cells and the body would recognize,
because they were present during the bulk of our genome adaptation (i.e.
hunter-gatherer span).
Aside from specific identified inflammation reducing foods,
it is important to choose foods that provide energy and essential nutrients and
do NOT increase inflammation. These
follow:
Carbohydrate sources: Vegetables and Fruits mostly unprocessed; Quinoa,
Wild rice and Old fashioned oatmeal (Scottish large chunks). These are the optimal choices. Next, if you consider whole grain products,
there will be some inflammation, but less compared with highly processed foods
(listed above).
Omega-3 fat rich foods including oily fish (Wild caught Salmon,
Herring, Sardines, Arctic Char, Anchovies, Mackerel, Lake Trout are among the
best). Meat and Eggs from exercised (truly
free range or run animals) and fed their natural diet (i.e. cows = grass) also
have more favorable fatty acid profiles compared to conventionally farmed ones
that tend to be not exercised and sick.
Monounsaturated fats are also greatly anti-inflammatory and a
great source for fat energy. Among the
richest sources of these are olives, avocados, most nuts and seeds and their unrefined
oils. Tip: the cheapest, extra-virgin
version of olives and avocados are the whole fruits themselves, not the
oils. You also get fiber with the healthy
unrefined oils when consuming the whole olives and avocados.
Five foods that are rich in anti-inflammatory compounds are:
·
Kelp
·
Tumeric
·
Wild caught salmon
·
Shitake mushrooms
·
Green Tea
·
Papaya
·
Blueberry
·
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
·
Broccoli
·
Sweet Potato
The optimal targets for fat intake are as follows:
A)
Trans fats – None – check the label and be sure it
states truly zero. Any increases risk of
heart disease, so avoid.
B)
Saturated fats – limit to < 25 g / day. Eliminate those from conventional animal
products because often toxins are stored here and sick animals would have
higher levels of bad fats. Whenever
possible try to choose exercised, naturally fed animals and even certified
organic if you can.
C)
Omega 3 and Omega 6 fats. Choose somewhere between 1:4 or 1:1 ratio
between these respectively. Decide where
you will fall in that range based on your inflammation levels. If you have more inflammation in your body
then target closer to 1:1 ratio vs. 1:4.
Optimally we need the follow for each:
Omega 3- minimum of 2-3 g/day, with 2-4 servings/week coming from animal
sources (i.e. oily fish (above) or seafood).
The other days of the week, you can choose them from plant sources (i.e.
ground flax seed or walnuts).
Omega 6 – If you are taking in 1:4 ratio relative to omega 3, then shoot for
8-12 g/day of these (otherwise increase omega 3 and meet in the middle
somewhere).
D)
Monounsaturated fats – these will be the primary focus
of your fat intake after you know that you’ve eliminated trans fats, are
limiting your saturated and are getting your appropriate target for omega 3 and
omega 6 fats. Most people require between
50 and 100 g of fat/day, depending on your calorie target and what percentage of
your energy needs your fat will comprise.
So these will make up the difference in your fat intake goal.
4)
Sample
Anti-inflammatory Meal.
Here is an example of an anti-inflammatory meal. You might have to adjust the portions in
order to support your weight management goal.
3-4 oz Wild caught salmon – lemon, garlic & pepper seasoned
+ grilled (seared, and then cooked in tinfoil)
2 cups Steamed Broccoli + Spinach
2 Tbsp Olive oil + Balsamic vinegar dressing
½ cup steamed mushrooms + onions in 1 Tbsp Olive oil.
1 cup Green tea steeped for 2-4 min.
1 cup Green tea steeped for 2-4 min.
Citations
www.rd411.com
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