Inflammation is a very common term used around us specially during seasonal changes when flu like symptoms prevails in many people. We have heard multiple times that ginger, garlic, berries, green leafy vegetables, citrus fruits, fiber rich diets all help in reducing inflammation or act as an Anti Inflammatory foods. Theses foods are always advised to be consumed as a part of day to day diet. So that we can maintain our immunity and fight against multiple diseases too.
Inflammation: Its Types and Symptoms
Inflammation can be defined as the release of white blood cells in the body whenever any unwanted invader invades our body like bacteria, virus, fungi, injury etc.
There are two main types of Inflammation: Acute and Chronic
Acute Inflammation:
It is a sudden response to a sudden damage occurring in the body like a cut, abrasions, sprains, fractures, bacterial infections, viral infections etc. So, the body starts releasing inflammatory cells at the site of injury to start the process of healing. Acute inflammation can be localised or systemic depending on the cause.
Most common symptoms of acute inflammation are:
- Redness
- Pain and tenderness
- Swelling
- Stiffness
- Fever
- Irritability
- Weakness
- Lethargy and sleepiness
The duration of the acute inflammation varies depending on the cause and ranges from few hours to few days.
Chronic Inflammation:
In chronic inflammation the inflammatory cells keeps releasing despite of the absence of the signals present from any foreign substance intrusion. That’s why it can lead to major changes in body tissues and organs. In many conditions chronic inflammation has been one of the prime factors in the onset and progression of the diseases like Diabetes (type 2), Heart diseases, Neruro degenerative disorders (Alzheimer’s disease), Autoimmune disorders (Arthritis, Osteoporosis, Psoriasis, Type1 Diabetes, Grave’s diseases etc). Chronic inflammation can be present for a few months to lifelong in an individual.
Anti Inflammatory Foods:
The role of anti inflammatory foods are well studied and are recommended to eat especially in cases of chronic inflammation.
Most Common Anti Inflammatory Foods includes:
#Green leafy vegetables — spinach, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, collards.
#Fruits — rich in VIT.C like Oranges, Cherries, starfruit, Gooseberry, Blueberry etc
#Oils — Olive oil, Sunflower oil, Grapeseed oil
#Nuts — like Walnuts , Prunes, Dates, Figs and Almonds
#Fishes — salmon, tuna and Sardines.
#Herbs and Spices — Turmeric, Ginger, Garlic, Cumin, Chillies, coriander, Mint, Fennel, Cinnamon etc
Benefits of Anti Inflammatory Foods:
The anti inflammatory foods are rich in anti oxidants and these helps in removing free radicals. The free radicals are known to cause long lasting damage to the cells and tissues increasing inflammation. The benefits of consuming anti inflammatory foods are more prominent in chronic diseases and thus help in relieving symptoms and their intensity. Many studies have shown improvement in chronic disease symptoms and delayed progression on consuming anti-inflammatory food in diabetes, heart disease, arthritis etc.
Anti-inflammatory foods are also rich in Omega-3 fatty acids (flaxseeds, salmon, walnuts).
Anti Inflammatory Properties:
Anti inflammatory property means that a substance which has tendency to reduce inflammation and this property of a substance is used in pharmacies in painkillers or analgesics. In terms of food; the food which increases oxidative stress in the body increases inflammation too like red meat, high fat dairy products, fried foods, sugar loaded food etc.
The Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII) is a dietary based score that measure the potential of foods on the inflammatory status of an individual. High DII diet increases inflammation whereas a diet which has Low DII is anti inflammatory in nature.
Food containing Omega-3 , anti oxidants have low DII are beneficial in anti inflammatory response.
Anti Inflammatory Effects of food:
As there are many food options which exhibit anti-inflammatory properties with the help of antioxidants present in them. Like berries contain antioxidants called anthocyanins which promote the production of NK Cells (Natural Killer Cells) in our body and thus boost our immunity. Similarly fishes like salmon, sardines are rich in Omega-3 fatty acid called EPA (EicosaPentaenoic Acid) and DHA (DocosaHexaenoic Acid). Our body breaks EPA and DHA into Resolvins and Protectins which have anti inflammatory properties. Another example is cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, kale etc contain Sulforaphane, an antioxidant which reduces cytokines and nuclear factor kappa B , as they both are inflammatory in nature.
As we all know that if inflammation stays for prolonged duration can destroy an individual’s cells and tissue thus decreasing immunity and leading to chronic disease. In such a situation the role of diet is also very important. Foods which are rich in antioxidants exhibit anti-inflammatory properties thus helping in derailing the process of chronic disorders. Similarly there are foods which increase the inflammation process thus promoting chronic disease progression. So a balanced diet is important for overall maintenance of our immune system.