Think about this! A harmful bacteria invade your body through a cut on your finger! What would your body do or how would it react to it? If a foreign invader invades the body (in this case a harmful bacteria) the immune system will produce a reaction in order to fight that foreign invader off. The response of our bodies to the stimuli is known as inflammation. Our immune system protects us from harmful invading organisms it's our defense against harmful pathogens.

So, therefore, inflammation is necessary for our survival. It defends/protects us from harmful pathogens and is also involved in the wound healing process. Harmful pathogen and injury will not only trigger inflammation. Autoimmune diseases, chemicals, oxidative stress and so on will also trigger inflammation.


Did you know that inflammation can be both good and harmful? So while it's essential for our survival it can play a role in many diseases which will be listed below.


When the immune system fights against its own healthy cells in the body then that can lead to horrible consequences like:

• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Crohn's disease
• Alzheimer's
• Cardiovascular disease
• Cancer
• Diabetes mellitus
• Celiac disease

Types of inflammation

They are:
Acute inflammation - Lasts for a few days
Chronic inflammation - Lasts for months or years


Causes of inflammation

Some causes of inflammation are:

• Pathogens (bacteria, virus)
• Stress
• Certain foods and drinks
• Food allergies

Symptoms of inflammation
Three symptoms of inflammation are redness, warmth, and swelling.





1. salmon

Image via pixabay.

2. tuna

Tuna sandwich. Image via pixabay.

3. sardines

Image via pixabay.

4. mackerel


Omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to reduce inflammation (1, 2, 3). Salmon, tuna, sardines, and mackerel are all fatty fishes that are excellent sources of omega-3 fatty acids. For those of who are vegetarian or vegan, you can consume other (plant) sources of omega-3 fatty acids like:

5. algae
6. nut oils
7. walnuts

Walnuts. Image via pixabay.

8. flaxseeds
9. chia seeds

Chia seeds. Image via pixabay.

10. pumpkin seeds

Image via pixabay.

There are three main omega-3 fatty acids (polyunsaturated omega-3 fatty acids) that are found in foods. They are:

• Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA)
• Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA)
• Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)

EPA and DHA are found in fatty fish whereas ALA is found in plants. Interestingly fish obtain DHA and EPA from algae.




Blueberries, citrus fruits, green tea, dark chocolate, and parsley are all examples of dietary sources of flavonoids. Flavonoids belong to the polyphenol class of phytonutrients and they are anti-inflammatory

Cytokines and chemokines are proteins that are produced by the immune system. These proteins result in chronic inflammation but flavonoids can inhibit certain steps within the pathway hence they can serve as natural inhibitors of inflammation (4).


11. blueberries

Blueberries. Image via pixabay.

12. citrus fruits

Image via pixabay.

13. green tea (5)

Image via pixabay.

 
14. dark chocolate

Image via pixabay.

15. parsley

Image via pixabay.

16. Oyster mushrooms (6)
17. Reishi

Mushrooms are edible fungi. There are many health benefits of mushrooms. Mushrooms contain the anti-inflammatory compounds polysaccharides, terpenoids, and phenolics which provide anti-inflammatory effects (7).

Oyster mushrooms are great in stir-fries.


Dark green leafy vegetables like:

18. kale

Kale. Image via pixabay.

19. broccoli

Image via pixabay.

and

20. spinach

Image via pixabay.

Some anti-inflammatory nutrients that kale, broccoli, and spinach contain are omega-3 fatty acids, the anti-inflammatory phytonutrients: flavonoids and carotenoids and antioxidants.


The relationship between free radical and antioxidants

What is a free radical and how are they created?


In the body, oxygen splits into single atoms which results in what we call free radicals. A free radical contains one or more unpaired electrons in their outer orbitals and that makes them very reactive/unstable. One thing that was very clear from the years that I have studied chemistry is that electrons like to be in pairs. So they are going to search the body for other electrons to pair with because in order for it to become stable it will have to react with other molecules to pair that electron with.


Free radicals can react with all the cell molecular components of the body. When that happens a second radical will be generated and in turn will react and so on. In other words, free radicals can start a chain reaction. What makes them dangerous is that excessive free radicals can damage cellular components like proteins, enzymes, DNA, cell membrane and so on when they react with them. When that happens these cells may not function well and die. If cellular damage occurs it can lead to a variety of diseases.

The damages that free radicals cause causes inflammation which will, in turn, lead to more free radicals.


Antioxidants are so beneficial because they can interact with free radicals safely and stop the chain reaction and thus prevent cell damage. Antioxidants repair the damage that is caused to our cells by free radicals. Vegetables like kale, broccoli, and spinach are full of the antioxidants vitamin A, C, and K.

Broccoli contains sulforaphane. What is sulforaphane? Sulforaphane is an organic compound that contains sulfur as the name suggests. You cannot directly get this compound from the broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables without a process.

Broccoli contains glucoraphanin and the enzyme myrosinase which when come into contact will produce sulforaphane. They will get into contact when you cut or chew the broccoli. How is this compound related to inflammation? Sulforaphane fights inflammation!




21. Watermelon

Watermelon has a high water content and is low in calories. Watermelon is also rich in phytonutrients. Examples of phytonutrients that watermelon is a source of are:

• Carotenoids (such as beta-carotene which is a type of carotenoid)
• Lycopene - Lycopene gives watermelon its red color.

These phytonutrients are anti-inflammatory antioxidants which reduce inflammation and fight free radicals.

This juicy fruit is also rich in vitamin C. Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin. It is an antioxidant because it donates an electron and so it neutralizes free radicals.

Watermelon. Image via pixabay.

22. Bone broth

Image via pixabay.

Bone broth fights inflammation due to its nutrient content. Processed foods, antibiotics and so on can damage our intestinal lining. Gelatin is found in bone broth and it repairs the gut lining and thus reduce inflammation. Proline and glycine also found in bone broth can also heal the gut lining.

Another nutrient that is found in bone broth is glucosamine and it can also reduce inflammation.

Read more on bone broth: Bone broth - What it is, the health benefits and recipes


23. Beets

Beets. Image via pixabay.

Beets are a source of the phytonutrients betalains. The two categories of betalains found are betanin and vulgaxanthin. Together with the antioxidants manganese and vitamin C they reduce inflammation and fight free radicals.

Additionally, betalain pigments give beets their red color.




24. Turmeric

Turmeric. Image via pixabay.

Turmeric is a spice that Indians use in their cooking (An Indian home will always have turmeric!). It gives their food a yellow color. Turmeric contains curcumin and that's what makes this spice so beneficial to us. Curcumin helps with inflammation and it's a great antioxidant.
 
 Aside from putting it in your food, you can add it to your smoothies, teas, and milk.



 25. Avocados

Image via pixabay.

Avocados contain phytosterols, vitamin E and C, magnesium, selenium, and zinc which makes it a great addition to your meals. Avocados have excellent anti-inflammatory properties.

There are so many ways that you can incorporate avocados into your diet! You can add them to smoothies, sandwiches, salads, desserts and so on.



Concluding Remarks
There are so many other foods that are not listed here that fight inflammation in the body that you can also incorporate into your diet. They are so simple to incorporate, you can even put them in smoothies. Try some for your next meal!

Related post: Can these 7 foods cause inflammation in the body?





 References


1. El-Seweidy M.M., Ali S.I., Elsweify S.E., Ali A.A., Mashhour M.M. Omega 3 fatty acids intake versus diclofenac in osteoarthritis induced in experimental rats. Functional Foods in Health and Disease 2017; 7(4); 291-302

2. Alessio Molfino, Maria Ida Amabile, Massimo Monti, and Maurizio Muscaritoli, “Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Critical Illness: Anti-Inflammatory, Proresolving, or Both?,” Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, vol. 2017, Article ID 5987082, 6 pages, 2017. doi:10.1155/2017/5987082

3. Xue B, Yang Z, Wang X, Shi H (2012) Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Antagonize Macrophage Inflammation via Activation of AMPK/SIRT1 Pathway. PLoS ONE 7(10): e45990. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0045990


5. Reygaert, W.C. An Update on the Health Benefits of Green Tea. Beverages 2017, 3, 6.


7. Elsayed A. Elsayed, Hesham El Enshasy, Mohammad A. M. Wadaan, and Ramlan Aziz, “Mushrooms: A Potential Natural Source of Anti-Inflammatory Compounds for Medical Applications,” Mediators of Inflammation, vol. 2014, Article ID 805841, 15 pages, 2014. doi:10.1155/2014/805841

The human body requires iron for survival! This iron can be found in foods. A deficiency in iron can lead to anemia. If iron is found in foods then why are people deficient to the point that it has lead to anemia? Apart from poverty, people are not eating the right foods and the body requires a steady supply of iron from our diet. However, one person's daily iron requirement may differ from another. Females, pregnant women and men iron requirements differ. If you have iron-deficiency anemia then yes you should be concerned because it can lead to serious consequences like death. All of this will be discussed further in this article.

In this post, I'm going to focus on iron-deficiency anemia. You are going to get anemia info, tips, recipes and a list of iron containing foods that you can eat.

Firstly:

An article published on Your Medical Source by contributing author Guy Slowik FRCS defines anemia as:

"a condition in which the blood does not supply the body with enough oxygen. This is because, in anemia, either the number of red blood cells circulating in the body is lower than normal or the levels of hemoglobin inside the red blood cells fall below normal."

Food containing gluten. Image via pixabay.

Many many years ago our ancestors were hunters and gatherers and so their diet consist of foods that they would hunt and gather like meat, fish, eggs, fruits, nuts, vegetables, etc. About 10,000 years ago humans started the domestication of animals and crops and as a result gluten containing grains like wheat became apart of their diet. This wheat however had changed a lot since then.

Some people are living a gluten-free lifestyle these days! The negative health effects that gluten has on their health is the reason why they're eating gluten-free foods. Do you think that you should? For your health? There are indeed health effects associated with gluten! In this blog post, I'll list these health effects. Also, it is important to know that not all persons are affected by gluten the same way and that some persons are not even affected at all.

• headaches
• itchy skin
• eczema
• Dermatitis herpetiformis
• gas
• diarrhea
• constipation
• abdominal pain
• villous atrophy
• anemia (B12 or iron deficiency)
• heartburn
• fatigue
• osteoporosis
• weight loss
• weight gain
• depression

Image via pixabay

Type 2 diabetes can be life threatening and can cause a lot of other illnesses to occur. Some people cope with it all wrong and end up in quite a pickle, like losing their sight or worst die from it. People think that they are fine if they keep taking pills, but they need to check their blood sugar regularly to ensure that it's indeed high before they do so. Also, taking pills is not the only thing you need to do.

Image via pixabay

Some tips to effectively manage Type 2 diabetes are:

• Check your blood sugar regularly - You need to check it regularly to determine if you need to take pills or insulin and what doses. Death can occur because someone took medication without checking and their blood sugar is normal and it lowered their blood sugar too low. If this happens, take something that has sugar and can easily be digested by your body. Additionally, you should keep a record of your blood sugar readings to see how you're managing it and to see where you can make improvements.

• Change your diet - This is necessary because what you eat will obviously be broken down by your digestive system into sugar and find itself in your blood. Some foods have more sugar than others and diabetics need to eat more of the foods that are less in sugar rather than the ones with more (Read: 10 smart ways to reduce your sugar intake). Foods that are low in fat and cholesterol are best to consume also.

• Exercise - Get regular exercise and on some days that you feel lazy or not up to it, you can go for a nice long walk instead of running on a treadmill and this makes things more tolerable. If you're overweight, try your utmost to lose some weight (Read: The best ways to lose weight).

• Plan your day to day activities - Plan your exercises, meals and so on and you'll see that your life runs smoothly and your healthier.

• Educate yourself - You need to know more about this disease if you have it so that you know what to avoid and so on, what this means for your body and how you can be a much healthier person. Additionally, you need to know about the various diseases that can arise due to diabetes and how to prevent them or what to check for at the doctor.

• Get regular checkups at the doctor - Diabetes can lead to many other illnesses of the body and it's better to detect these illnesses at the beginning. What happens is that someone might not go and check their eyes and they might have diabetic retinopathy and so they don't know at the beginning and could become blind.