Reduce Inflammation and joint pain with a Healthy Diet

Reduce Inflammation and joint pain with a Healthy Diet

Eating healthy is more than just losing weight. When we think of the word “Diet” we think of a temporary change of our eating habits to lose weight. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

Your Diet is your eating lifestyle! A good diet is when you’re eating good or healthy foods. A bad diet is where you are eating bad or unhealthy foods. Thus, when you Diet Rite, you are eating good or healthy foods and making good, healthy food choices.

Your diet, as you should be aware, has both good and harmful long-term effects on your body and your health. According to Medical News Today, some benefits of a healthy diet include:

  • Weight loss.
  • Reduced cancer risk.
  • Diabetes management.
  • Heart health and stroke prevention.
  • The health of your children.
  • Strong bones and teeth.
  • Better mobility

While the risk  of a poor diet includes:

  • being overweight or obese
  • tooth decay
  • high blood pressure
  • high cholesterol
  • heart disease and stroke
  • type-2 diabetes
  • osteoporosis
  • some cancers
  • depression

It is important to note that a poor diet, environmental toxins, and stress contribute to inflammatory processes. Since we live in a convenience food culture that prioritizes bacon, sugar, and chips over blueberries and spinach, it’s no surprise that Americans are suffering

Our dietary decisions lead to inflammation, weight gain, and joint pain.

What is Inflammation?

Inflammation is a process by which your body’s white blood cells protect you from infection from outside invaders, such as bacteria and viruses. When inflammation happens, chemicals from your body’s white blood cells enter your blood or tissues to protect your body from invaders.

This raises the blood flow to the area of injury or infection. It can cause redness and warmth. Some of the chemicals cause fluid to leak into your tissues, resulting in swelling.

But in some diseases, like arthritis, your body’s defense system or your immune system — triggers inflammation when there are no invaders to fight off. When your immune system acts as if regular tissues are infected or somehow unusual, This usually causes joint pain and damage.

How it affects your joints

Inflammation attacks joint tissues and can cause joint swelling, increased joint fluid, cartilage, bone damage, and muscle loss. Nerves in the joints are also activated, causing pain.  We experience these as pain in our hands, wrists, shoulders, back, hips, knees, ankles, and feet.

There are several types of inflammation, and each type can have it’s own unique cause. However, an article published by the Cleveland Clinic states: “What you eat can affect inflammation,”

Inflammation is often triggered as a way to protect your health. When the immune system notices anything foreign in the body, it will release inflammation to attack the invading substance.

An interesting conclusion could be that the harmful properties consumed in a poor diet can cause the immune system to release inflammation to attack these substances, believing them to be foreign invaders to your system.

To support this theory, an article published by the Mayo Clinic states: Research shows that what you eat can affect the levels of C-reactive protein (CRP)—a marker for inflammation—in your blood.

That could be because some foods like processed sugars help release inflammatory messengers that can raise the risk of chronic inflammation.

Other foods like fruits and veggies help your body fight against oxidative stress, which can trigger inflammation.

According to the Arthritis Foundation, consuming these foods will cause increased inflammation, resulting in additional joint pain.

Sugar

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition warns that processed sugars trigger the release of inflammatory messengers called cytokines. Avoid Desserts, pastries, chocolate bars, sodas, even fruit juices for these contain added sugars. Sugar goes by many names. It is important to read labels carefully, watching for words ending in “ose,” like fructose (High Fructose corn syrup) or sucrose

Saturated Fats

Several studies have shown that saturated fats trigger adipose (fat tissue) inflammation, which is not only an indicator for heart disease but it also worsens arthritis inflammation Pizza and cheese are the biggest sources of saturated fats in the average American diet, according to the National Cancer Institute. Other culprits include meat products (especially red meat), full-fat dairy products, pasta dishes, and grain-based desserts

Trans Fats

Harvard School of Public Health researchers helped sound the alarm about trans fat in the early 1990s. Known to trigger systemic inflammation, trans fat can be found in fast foods and other fried products, processed snack foods, frozen breakfast products, cookies, donuts, crackers, and most stick margarine. Avoid foods with partially hydrogenated oils in the ingredient labels Fast foods like burgers and French Fries are packed with trans fats and should also be avoided.

Omega 6 Fatty Acids

Omega 6 fatty acids are essential fatty acids that the body needs for normal growth and development. The body needs a healthy balance of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids. Excess consumption of omega-6s can trigger the body to produce pro-inflammatory chemicals. These fatty acids are found in oils such corn, safflower, sunflower, grapeseed, soy, peanut, and vegetable; mayonnaise; and many salad dressings

Refined Carbohydrates

White flour products (bread, rolls, crackers) white rice, white potatoes (instant mashed potatoes, or french fries) and many bowls of cereal are refined carbohydrates. According to Scientific American, processed carbohydrates may trump fats as the main driver of escalating rates of obesity and other chronic conditions. These high-glycemic index foods fuel the production of advanced glycation end (AGE) products that stimulate inflammation

MSG

Mono-sodium glutamate (MSG) is a flavor-enhancing food additive most commonly found in prepared Asian food and soy sauce. It has also been added to fast foods, prepared soups and soup mixes, salad dressings, and deli meats. This chemical can trigger two important pathways of chronic inflammation, and affect liver health as well

Aspartame

 
Trying to go sugar-free? Aspartame is a non-nutritive, intense artificial sweetener found in more than 4,000 products worldwide. While it’s approved by the FDA, studies on the effects are mixed, and the impact on people with autoimmune disease are unknown. If you are sensitive to this chemical, your immune system may react to the “foreign substance” by attacking the chemical, which in return, will trigger an inflammatory response

Alcohol

Alcohol is a burden to the liver. Excessive use weakens liver function and disrupts other multi-organ interactions and can cause inflammation. It is best eliminated or used in moderation

Reducing your Joint Pain

We all want to perform at our best, whether it’s at work, at the gym or playing with our kids. But one of the biggest issues that many people face is chronic inflammation. Inflammation can cause joint pain and fatigue that can hold you back.

The good news, according to the Mayo Clinic article, is: Foods that are anti-inflammatory tend to be the same foods that can help keep you healthy in other ways, too.

So eating with inflammation in mind doesn’t have to be complicated or restrictive, and it will help you in numerous ways. When you eat healthy, you Diet Rite.

What does an anti-inflammatory diet do?

Your immune system becomes activated when your body recognizes anything that is foreign—such as an invading microbe, plant pollen, or chemical.  One of the most powerful tools to combat inflammation comes not from the pharmacy, but from the grocery store.

Studies have shown that components of foods or beverages may have anti-inflammatory effects, according to an article from the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard School. Eating a wide range of healthy, whole foods can help fight dangerous chronic inflammation. Here are some foods you can eat that will help reduce inflammation

Dark Leafy Green Vegetables

One good inflammation-fighting choice most of us don’t get enough of is dark, leafy greens. Leafy greens like spinach, kale, chard, arugula, endive, beet greens,all contain significant concentrations of vitamins and other nutrients that have been found to reduce chronic inflammation. Vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin E and vitamin K, just to name a few, have all shown, in research, that they can fight inflammation Many leafy greens also contain alpha-linolenic acid, an omega-3 fat that is known for its anti-inflammatory benefits

Berries

Berries, especially blueberries, are full of vitamins and antioxidants called flavonoids. Flavonoids are a diverse group of phytonutrients (plant chemicals) found in almost all fruits and vegetables. Like other phytonutrients, flavonoids are powerful antioxidants with anti-inflammatory and immune system benefits., It has been reported that flavonoids are important because of their antioxidant, antibacterial, antiviral, and anti‐inflammatory activities

Green Tea

Green Tea has antioxidants called catechins, which help reduce inflammation. Catechins are natural antioxidants that help prevent cell damage and provide other benefits. These substances can reduce the formation of free radicals in the body, protecting cells and molecules from damage. Green tea contains EGCG, the most powerful type of catechin. Other teas have this effect too, but green tea has the most benefits

Beets

Studies show that beets can decrease inflammation and other risk factors for chronic diseases like high blood pressure and diabetes. Beets are packed with anti-inflammatory phytonutrients. The phytonutrients inhibit the enzymes that notify cells to activate the release of inflammation which is normally a healthy and protective action.

Beans & Legumes

These foods combat inflammation because they’re loaded with antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds, Beans are high in fiber and protien, plus they’re loaded with antioxidants and other anti-inflammatory agents Magnesium has been shown to help reduce inflammation

some people claim that beans and legumes can cause inflammation because they contain lectins which are hard to break down.  However soaking, sprouting, and cooking beans and legumes can neutralize the lectins and make consuming these foods perfectly safe.

If you have a natural sensitivity to beans and legumes, which can cause an inflammatory response, then it’s important to determine how your body reacts before proceeding further

Broccoli

Broccoli and other vegetables in the cruciferous family are all high in vitamin K. Some research suggests that vitamin K can help regulate inflammation in the body by affecting as many as 14 different causes of inflammation. Unfortunately, most of us do not get enough vitamin K in our diets There are two types of vitamin K—one that is found in leafy green vegetables like spinach and one that is found in liver and eggs

Wild Salmon

When it comes to inflammation, you’ll hear about omega-3 fatty acids. Fish, the especially salmon, is a great source of omega-3s—it contains two different types, DHA and EPA. Omega-3s are a type of nutrient that can help reduce inflammation and ease joint pain. Other fish high in omega-3 fatty acids are sardines, mackerel, and tuna

Ginger

Ginger is more than just a side to sushi or an ingredient in tea; ginger has benefits of its own, too. Ginger contains chemicals that are antioxidants, anti-inflammatory, and antibacterial. Studies show that it helps ease severe inflammation associated with rheumatoid arthritis, too.

Turmeric

While it may not be familiar to many Americans, turmeric is popular in Asia—particularly in India. Turmeric is a yellow spice that has many health benefits. One of the chemicals in turmeric inhibits chronic inflammatory signals in the body. This eases inflammation, which can prevent joint damage, arthritis, heart disease, and liver damage. Read our article on herbs and spices to learn more about how herbs and spices not only spice up your meals but spices up and heal your body

Conclusion

We now know what inflammation is and how it works. It is a Diet Rite’s theory that if inflammation is your body’s natural response to foreign invaders, then the foods we eat can enter your bloodstream and be misinterpreted as foreign invaders.

This will cause your body to release inflammation to areas where there are no, technical, foreign invaders which will cause inflammation in your body.

Conversely, there are foods that will in effect clean your blood of these substances and tell your white blood cells everything is fine, and circumvent the release of inflammation in your body.

This seems terribly simplistic, but if we think about it, it does seem not only possible but very plausible.

The reason you should join Diet Rite and continue to support us is we will provide you with complete information about why you should eat healthily and why certain foods are good for you.

There can be no better #healtheatingadvice than that.

Remember, It is important to realize foods can be the cause, or solution to a lot of our health problems. So it is important to Diet Rite.

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/322268

https://www.sahealth.sa.gov.au/wps/wcm/connect/public+content/sa+health+internet/healthy+living/is+your+health+at+risk/the+risks+of+poor+nutrition

https://health.clevelandclinic.org/5-foods-that-can-cause-inflammation/

https://www.arthritis.org/health-wellness/healthy-living/nutrition/foods-to-limit/8-food-ingredients-that-can-cause-inflammation

Leave a Reply