We generally think of inflammation as an acute painful episode but there is also a more insidious type of chronic inflammation that lays the foundations for chronic disease to develop and how we eat plays a huge part in how this is created.
This chronic inflammation shows itself initially as a general lowering of energy levels, a feeling of not being 'on top of our game', we may pick up more bugs than usual and we are slow to recover after exercise.
In Natural Nutrition we use the cell picture as an analogy to describe what is happening to the whole. I would say the cells of the body are finding it more difficult to cleanse and so the environment is becoming stagnant, a bit like a pool of water that has no movement, eventually it becomes fetid and unable to support life.
The food we eat has the power to change the environment of each of our 70 trillion cells and we have 2 choices;
We can make them more stagnant and inflamed by drinking soda, caffeine filled drinks, eating an excess of processed foods, white carbs, sugary foods, including artificial sweeteners, and food that creates acidity in the body such as too much alcohol, caffeine wheat, meat and dairy.
OR
We can create more ease, flow and movement, aerating our cells by drinking plenty of water and eating plenty of fresh vegetables and fruit, healthy fats such as olive oil and avocadoes, oily fish, whole grains, pasture fed meat, a good portion of raw vegetables each day, beans and legumes, nuts and seeds.
Our body is ever forgiving so we don't have to be obsessive; give the body just a bit of wiggle room by swapping in healthy, inflammation reducing choices and the body will repay you many times over.
So what swaps or add-ins can you make today to start reducing some inflammation?