Inflammation consequences of a bad diet | East Bernard Express | journal-spectator.com – Wharton Journal Spectator

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Updated: October 27, 2022 @ 4:08 am
Chuck Norris

Chuck Norris
According to Harvard Health, inflammation plays a central role in many of the most challenging diseases we face today.
So, what is our first line of defense? To alleviate symptoms, the common drug of choice is what we refer to as a pain reliever. Like aspirin, they are what doctors call NSAIDs, or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Harvard Health estimates that about 15% of the U.S. population takes an NSAID regularly, including over the counter and prescription strengths. Counting all users, it adds up to more than 30 billion doses taken each year.
But what can we do to bolster our health and reduce our susceptibility to inflammation? How about downing a handful of grapes a day?
“What you choose to eat, and drink, is one of the most important lifestyle choices that can influence your immune health,” David Nieman, a professor of biology at Appalachian State University and specialist in exercise, nutrition and immunology, recently explained to The New York Times.
As to grapes, Healthline points out that grapes contain a property called anthocyanins, which reduce inflammation. They are also one of the best sources of another antioxidant compound called resveratrol. Studies show that resveratrol also can protect the heart against inflammation, says Healthline.
Don’t like grapes? There are loads of anti-inflammatory fruits and vegetables readily available to us. In a 2011 study, Nieman and his team found that “adults who ate at least three servings of fruit per day had fewer upper respiratory tract infections throughout the year than those who did not eat as much fruit.”
In fighting inflammation, it’s important to take a moment to try to understand how inflammation works.
“Inflammation represents an essential survival mechanism that helps the body fight off hostile microbes and repair damaged tissue,” Harvard Health reminds us.
There are two forms of inflammation: acute and chronic. “Acute inflammation comes on rapidly, usually within minutes, but is generally short-lived … Chronic inflammation often begins with the same cellular response, but morphs into a lingering state that persists for months or years. In other cases, low-level inflammation becomes activated even when there is no apparent injury or disease.
Unchecked, the immune system prompts white blood cells to attack nearby healthy tissues and organs, setting up a chronic inflammatory process that plays a central role in some of the most challenging diseases of our time, including rheumatoid arthritis, cancer, heart disease, diabetes, asthma, and even Alzheimer’s.”
A great number of inflammation-promoting foods make up America’s daily diet. By now, the list is all too familiar.
“For example, ultra-processed foods like fast food, frozen meals, and processed meats have been associated with higher blood levels of inflammatory markers like CRP (a blood marker for inflammation),” notes Healthline.
Other foods like sugar-sweetened beverages and refined carbs have also shown to promote inflammation, as well as items like potato chips, fried chicken, mozzarella sticks, bacon, ham and hot dogs.
“It’s perfectly healthy to eat these occasionally,” Healthline concedes, but not as a daily diet. “Even low levels of inflammation on a chronic basis can lead to disease,” they warn.
To keep inflammation in check, here is a list of some flavorsome alternative inflammation-fighting foods to balance the ledger. How about adding some strawberries, blueberries, raspberries or blackberries to those grapes (or instead of) for a nice fruit salad? All these fruits contain anthocyanins, says Healthline. One study has shown that adults who consumed blueberry powder in a sample study “produced significantly more natural killer cells (NK cells) capable of mounting rapid immune responses against foreign pathogens and tumor cells than those who did not consume the powder,” reports Healthline.
You say you like a nice, fatty steak? Make it a salmon steak, a great source of protein and the long-chain omega-3 fatty acids. Salmon also contains docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which further helps reduce inflammation.
Research has shown that eating a lot of cruciferous vegetables (cool-weather vegetables that have flowers with four petals) is associated with a decreased risk of heart disease and cancer. This may be related to the anti-inflammatory effects of the antioxidants they contain, according to Healthline. The family includes cauliflower, a highly versatile vegetable Mark Twain once described as “cabbage with a college education.”
The Healthline report calls green tea “one of the healthiest beverages you can drink,” and who would argue? Its many benefits are due to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, especially a substance called epigallocatechin-3-gallate.
We shouldn’t scrimp on the tomatoes either. They are a “nutritional powerhouse,” says Healthline. Tomatoes are high in vitamin C, potassium and lycopene, an antioxidant with “impressive anti-inflammatory properties.”
You might consider topping off your meal with some delicious dark chocolate. It is packed with antioxidants that help reduce inflammation. For an infusion of benefits, make sure it contains at least 70% cocoa to reap significant benefits.
“Part of the problem (in getting people to eat this way) lies in people’s misguided assumptions,” writes Harvard Health. “Many still view healthy eating as being too restrictive – low fat, low calorie, low sugar. Then there are the perceptions that healthy foods are expensive and recipes complex.”
“The overall message is that healthy eating takes too much work, and that healthy food is not tasty,” says Teresa Fung, an adjunct professor of nutrition at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
That, I would say, is a bunch of highly processed baloney.
Write to Chuck Norris ([email protected]) with your questions about health and fitness. Follow Chuck Norris through his official social media sites, on Twitter @chucknorris and Facebook’s “Official Chuck Norris Page.” He blogs at http://chucknorrisnews.blogspot.com.
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