The Solution: Anti-Inflammatory Diet
You can help keep chronic inflammation at bay by simply making some basic lifestyle changes.
Maintaining a healthy weight is one of the best ways to stave off chronic inflammation. Basically, extra fat fuels an inflammation response in people, so too much of you, can lead to too much inflammation.
Adopting an anti-inflammatory diet, a diet loaded with antioxidant-rich vegetables and fruits, and fiber-rich whole grains and beans, seems to reduce and prevent inflammation. Study after study link this type of Mediterranean-style diet with lower levels of C-reactive protein.
Found in higher-fat fish like salmon, as well as canola oil, walnuts and flaxseeds, a healthy balance of omega-3s with other fats reduces production of hormone-like substances that stimulate inflammation.
Studies also show lower levels of inflammation in those who exercise regularly. Exercising is also an excellent way to help maintain a healthy weight, another important inflammation-reducing strategy.
Supplements like glucosamine, sulfur, and chondroitin are available for inflammation, but keep in mind they only alleviate inflammation symptoms, and don’t address the underlying causes of the inflammation, as do the soothing lifestyle changes. Supplementing your diet with a good multivitamin, however, ensures you get the right level of nutrients you need everyday. And if you’re not a fish fan, you should take a fish-oil pill that supplies 500 to 1000 mg of EPA and DHA combined.
