{"id":45081,"date":"2015-11-04T07:15:51","date_gmt":"2015-11-04T12:15:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=45081"},"modified":"2021-05-18T01:44:45","modified_gmt":"2021-05-18T05:44:45","slug":"inflammatory-foods-what-is-inflammation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/health\/inflammatory-foods-what-is-inflammation\/","title":{"rendered":"Dairy, Gluten and the Shocking Truth About Inflammatory Foods"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Dairy,
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

You know how when you get a scrape or a cut, and the area around the wound gets slightly red and swollen? That\u2019s inflammation<\/a>, a part of your body\u2019s natural response to ward off infection. That\u2019s the good <\/em>kind of inflammation. But there\u2019s also the bad kind \u2014 the chronic, low-grade inflammation that you can\u2019t feel in your body \u2014 that’s linked to a whole host of diseases, including depression<\/a>, cancer<\/a>, diabetes<\/a> and heart disease<\/a> to name just a few.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the problem: If you can\u2019t see inflammation<\/a>, and can\u2019t feel it \u2014 how do you know where it\u2019s coming from? Well, you might be surprised to know that some experts suspect your lunch (or dinner\u2026or breakfast) could be putting you at risk for disease. Here\u2019s what you need to know about the link between inflammatory foods and your health.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>What\u2019s Worse: The Calories in Coffee or Candy?<\/a><\/p>\n

The American Diet<\/strong> and Inflammatory Foods<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cIt’s like adding a lighted match to a vat of gasoline. You get an explosion of inflammation.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

If you grew up a couple generations ago, you likely would have eaten some protein at every meal, but never more than could fit on the palm of your hand. (Here\u2019s what 25 grams of protein<\/a> looks like.) Your mother wouldn\u2019t let you leave the table until you ate all your vegetables. And she might even make you choke down a tablespoon of cod liver oil every day, says Barry Sears<\/a>, PhD, founder of the Inflammation Research Foundation<\/a> and a leading researcher in the field of anti-inflammatory nutrition. It may seem primitive \u2014 but we could actually learn a thing or two from our grandparents about anti-inflammatory diets, he says.<\/p>\n

Technically speaking, inflammation occurs when the amount of omega-6 fatty acids you consume outweigh the omega-3 fatty acids<\/a>. Omega-6s are an essential part of a healthful diet, but they\u2019re also the primary building blocks of pro-inflammatory hormones, says Sears. That\u2019s why no more than two percent of your total daily calories should come from omega-6s.<\/p>\n

Today, the average American consumes about eight percent of their calories from omega-6 fatty acids \u2014 largely due to our increased consumption of processed foods<\/a>. At the same time, consumption of anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids \u2014 found in fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, sardines, albacore tuna and your grandmother\u2019s cod liver oil \u2014 has dropped about 90 percent in the last three decades, he explains.<\/p>\n

By themselves, high levels of omega-6 alone won\u2019t necessarily lead to inflammation \u2014 unless the body metabolizes them into longer chain fatty acids with the help of the hormone insulin. The problem is that the more refined carbohydrates we eat, the more insulin our bodies produce \u2014 and we\u2019re eating more processed, refined carbohydrates than ever before. \u201cWhen you have high levels of omega-6 acids and high levels of insulin, it\u2019s like adding a lighted match to a vat of gasoline,\u201d says Sears. \u201cYou get an explosion of inflammation.\u201d<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> How Bad Is Your Food from 1 to 10? Try This Food Calculator<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Dairy,
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Are Dairy and Gluten Really to Blame?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Sounds simple: Stock up on salmon and nix the Entenmann\u2019s, and you should be good, right? Not so fast. Just because you understand the science doesn\u2019t necessarily make it any easier to navigate the grocery aisles and understand which foods could cause inflammation.<\/p>\n

Some foods have gotten a bad reputation \u2014 and don\u2019t deserve it. For example, while some studies suggest a link between dairy and low-grade inflammation, there isn\u2019t evidence that milk products actually cause<\/em> that inflammation. One review<\/a> of eight randomized controlled trials found that dairy consumption did not<\/em> cause increased levels of inflammation.<\/p>\n

In addition, everyone\u2019s favorite scapegoat, gluten<\/a>, which 20 percent of Americans<\/a> now try to avoid, is also often called inflammatory, though there\u2019s no evidence that gluten causes problems in people without celiac disease, says Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics<\/a> Spokesperson Lisa Cimperman, MS, RD, LD, clinical dietitian at University Hospitals Case Medical Center<\/a> in Cleveland.<\/p>\n

In fact, eating moderate amounts of any one food won\u2019t likely put you in harm\u2019s way at all.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe foods that we eat certainly play a role in the inflammatory response; however, single foods are unlikely to exert much effect,\u201d Cimperman says. \u201cRather, it is the sum of our diet as a whole.\u201d<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> Gym Time or Meal Time: What Matters Most for Weight Loss?<\/a><\/p>\n

If you want to start fighting inflammation in your own body, you can probably keep the whole-grain bread and focus on ditching these products instead:<\/p>\n

Vegetable Oil
\n<\/strong>Vegetable oils, such as corn, oil, soybean and sunflower oils are rich in omega-6 fatty acids, which could throw your body out of balance, says Sears. Read labels to mine out the omega-6: The more polyunsaturated fat a food product contains, the more omega-6 it contains. Instead, choose snacks and cook with oils higher in monounsaturated fats, such as olive oil, which will contain higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids.<\/p>\n

White Carbs
\n<\/strong>Your body breaks down white bread, pasta, rice and potatoes into glucose even faster than table sugar, says Sears. This increases your insulin levels and creates an environment for inflammation to thrive. Stick to whole grains, which might actually lower your body\u2019s inflammatory response. A 2010 study in <\/a>The Journal of Nutrition<\/em><\/a> found that eating whole grains lowered levels of inflammatory proteins such as C-reactive protein<\/a>, which becomes elevated as a response to inflammation in the body.<\/p>\n

RELATED:<\/strong> Carbs 101: The Truth About Carbohydrates<\/a><\/p>\n

Cheeseburgers
\n<\/em><\/strong>Red meat and full-fat dairy are leading sources of saturated fat in the American diet, according to the National Cancer Institute<\/a>, and research suggests<\/a> that diets high in saturated fats (found in fatty animal products) can trigger inflammatory responses. There\u2019s no reason to shun burgers entirely, but take one from Cookie Monster and remember that cheeseburgers are should only be a \u201csometimes food<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Energy Bars
\n<\/em><\/strong>Many \u201chealthy\u201d store-bought energy bars contain palm kernel oil, which is very rich in palmitic acid, a fat that Sears calls \u201cthe bad boy of saturated fats\u201d for its link to increased inflammation<\/a>. And if that wasn\u2019t bad enough, they usually pack in as much sugar as a candy bar<\/a>. Reach for a piece of fruit next time you\u2019re in an afternoon slump \u2014 or make your own protein bars (like these)<\/a> at home.<\/p>\n

\"Dairy,
Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Controlling Inflammation: The Ultimate Balancing Act<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Now\u2019s the moment when you point out that your great-uncle lived until 92 on a diet comprised almost entirely of cheeseburgers and Wonder bread. Well, while certain foods are more likely to trigger an inflammatory response than others, the extent really depends on the person. Genetics comes into play a bit here, says Sears. Just as some people can smoke a pack of cigarettes a day and never get sick, others can eat junk food every day and never experience the effects of inflammation.<\/p>\n

Your overall diet also plays a major role, says Sears. If you eat a ton of omega-6 fatty acids but you don\u2019t consume a lot of of simple sugars<\/a> or white carbs, then you won\u2019t make very much insulin, and therefore you won\u2019t produce inflammation. \u201cIt\u2019s [the] combination of the diet that determines how much inflammation you will produce,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Luckily, with simple tweaks, you can change the balance of omega-3 to omega-6 in your diet within just 30 days simply by cleaning up your diet, Sears says. To accomplish this, he suggests dividing your plate into three equal sections, with two-thirds of the plate filled with colorful fruits and vegetables and a third of the plate with low-fat protein. You\u2019ll know you\u2019re in the healthy zone if you eat a meal and then feel no hunger and no fatigue for the next five hours, he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bad news is you have to do it every five hours for the rest of your life to maintain inflammation in that zone. The good news is it\u2019s easy,\u201d says Sears.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Is your diet full of inflammatory foods? Here\u2019s what you need to know about how the meals you’re eating might spell big trouble for your health.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,7],"tags":[291,41,51,345,350],"class_list":["post-45081","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-diet-nutrition","category-health","tag-clean-eating","tag-diets","tag-food-choices","tag-tax1conditions","tag-tax2type-2-diabetes"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45081","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45081"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45081\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45081"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45081"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45081"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}