Why Food Can Lead To Increased Inflammation

It’s surprising to think that the food you eat can actually help to treat inflammation in the body. But there’s strong proof to support the claim the food you eat has either a pro inflammatory or an anti inflammatory effect on your body and that almost all of the food in the Standard American Diet have a pro inflammatory effect. Why in the world would that be?

The primary reason researchers think that foods can cause inflammation is due to the giant amount of artificial compounds now found in foods. Foods are usually loaded with compounds like artificial colors and sweeteners, preservatives, and residual pesticides. These can lead the body to go on the alert, as it were.

When that occurs, inflammation is one of the reactions. The body thinks it needs to defend itself and so it kicks off the inflammation response. Refined sugar and white flour can also have a similar effect on the body. When you eat foods that are rich in refined sugar, they make your blood sugar quickly rise, which can start the body’s inflammation response as well.

Inflammation is a response that comes from the body thinking that it has to protect itself. When you get an injury or stung from a poisonous insect, your body inflames the area to attempt to seal off the area so that repairs can be made. Unfortunately for us, the inflammation response can also have negative results. What are some examples of these?

Discomfort is the largest one. Inflammation typically comes with rather a lot of pain. Not only that but many inflammatory conditions are increased, things like arthritis which can sometimes be very painful. Having an increased inflammation response can also hamper the immune system. Since the immune system is responsible for inflammation in the body, when it’s consistently on the alert and in an increased state of readiness, it takes away from its ability to perform some place else.

Foods that reduce inflammation are often an excellent idea, as are anti inflammatory herbs and spices.