Three Foods to Fight Inflammation
By Randi Morse
When I think of inflammation, I think of swelling, pain, and redness. There are many times when inflammation can happen within the body. This type of information can cause a wide array of problems, including bronchitis, body pain, and even heart disease. Inflammation is a sign that your body is doing what it is supposed to do: fight infection. Unfortunately, this natural side effect can cause changes that your body is unable to handle. Researchers are still studying inflammation they're trying to determine if our diets can affect our body causing inflammation. It turns out, there are some healthy eating plans that can help keep your immune system working well and thus keep the inflammation down.
Stick To the Edges
One of the best ways to find foods that will help reduce inflammation is to stick to the outside edges of your local grocery store. While every store chain organizes their inventory differently, one thing usually stays the same: all of the healthiest foods are located on the outside edges of the store. The edges is where you will find your produce, your proteins, and you are dairy. If you are looking to eat foods that are anti-inflammatory, try sticking to purchasing foods only from the edges of the grocery store.
Package Foods
While it would be great to be able to purchase everything from the edges of the store, most of us find that we need to purchase packaged or jarred food at least some of the time. If you are looking to buy anti-inflammatory jarred or packaged food, stick to foods that are low sodium or that have no sodium. Make sure that there are no sweeteners included in the foods as well.
Chocolate
There are currently studies being done that will help determine what foods are anti-inflammatory and which ones are not. One of the most promising studies shows that dark chocolate, or chocolate that is more than 70 percent cocoa, can help reduce inflammation. Don't go running for the dark chocolate yet, however, as the studies have only been completed with lab animals so there are no concrete conclusions.
There are a number of things we can do to get our health better. One thing we can do is to visit a chiropractor on a regular basis. Regular chiropractic visits can be a huge help for those struggling with pain and internal inflammation.
To learn more about your health, wellness and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Jersey City, N.J.