The Anti-Inflammatory Food Pyramid

This week’s research spotlight asks the question: Is there a group of anti-inflammatory foods that, when eaten together, reduce your body’s inflammation levels?

The question you may be asking, however, is: Why does inflammation matter? What does inflammation do? What is inflammation?

Inflammation is an often misunderstood function of the body. It initiates healing, helps with alerting immune cells that protect us and fight off foreign pathogens, and repair tissue damage. Inflammation is the normal reaction to tissue injury, infection, and chemical irritation. 

Typically, inflammation resolves quickly on its own but, in rare cases, it can be prolonged over long periods and this can result in disorders of chronic pain. If a problem is left unchecked, it results in a process called chronic inflammation.

One of the most relevant conditions to chronic pain and inflammation is the disease known as OA or osteoarthritis, which causes the suffering of over 40 million in Europe and roughly 12% of the U.S. population, around 21 million Americans. OA is caused by large amounts of inflammation in the joints which results from chronic stress on the joint. In particular, OA is hard to treat with normal pain relief drugs like NSAIDs (Advil) and weak opioids (tramadol, codeine) and these can lead to severe side effects. OA is just one of many inflammation-dependent diseases that lead to chronic pain disorders.  

So how do we get these people out of pain?

One possible answer is Food as medicine. 

A group of researchers in Italy conducted a large review of the research surrounding the foods that we know have anti-inflammatory (AI)  properties. They found, after sifting through hundreds of studies, several groups of foods that have anti-inflammatory properties that have been verified as effective. 

As you can see the pyramid puts water, fruits, and vegetables at the bottom, signifying these foods should be the most abundant part of an AI diet. An emphasis was placed on eating a variety of LOW glycemic index carbohydrates AKA whole bread and whole grain rice/pasta (the less processed the better). It's important to distinguish and eliminate the high glycemic carbs (like sugars, honey, potatoes, candy, "instant" products, and carrots/corn/peas) as they are directly responsible for elevating many PRO-inflammatory markers. 

A variety of foods were added to the pyramid listed in ascending order: red wine, yogurt, curcumin, echinacea, ginger, seeds/nuts, legumes. These products should be consumed in moderate amounts throughout the week to obtain their potential AI benefits. 

The important fish species were the ones with the highest levels of healthy omega-3 fats: bluefish, mackerel, anchovies, sardines, tuna, and swordfish. Overall, white meat and, most importantly, fish, were preferred over red meats. Unfortunately, daily consumption of red meat is found to directly elevate inflammation and increase the risk of colorectal cancer, kidney failure, diverticulitis and heart disease. On the bright side red meat is full of excellent nutrition like B3, B6,zinc, selenium and protein, so eating 1 potion per week is helpful. 

Supplements were found to be important - specifically vitamin D, fiber (both soluble and insoluble), omega-3 fatty acids, and vitamin B12 were commonly found to be deficient and played important roles in reversing inflammation and promoting normal function. 

A hugely important point: supplements that contained nutrients that had been extracted or contained isolated nutrients outside of their natural food format were less effective at reducing inflammation than obtaining those nutrients from real whole foods. 

The effectiveness of real whole foods is the central tenet behind Standard Process supplements. Its for this reason that we recommend SP to our patients. All of the food groups represented in the food pyramid (except water) are found in supplement form. You can be confident these supplements contain whole foods in their natural forms, minimally processed (grinding/mixing/pressing), and still taste like food.

If you're suffering from chronic inflammation and you're ready to make a change for the better, consider using real whole food as medicine combined with a healthy active lifestyle and regular chiropractic care for the best results. 

Please leave a comment or give us a call at the clinic for more information. 

Source paper: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/324689887