Why inflammation matters
Body-wide inflammation is tied to most chronic diseases, and limits health and longevity. Chronic inflammation also causes joint, spine and musculoskeletal pain, can slow healing after surgery, and may make surgical outcomes less predictable. Before considering surgery, it is worth tackling.
Diet greatly influences the inflammatory state of your body. But diet is not everything: exercise decreases inflammation, being overweight increases it and affects your joints and how you feel pain, and smoking causes severe, chronic inflammation. Light daily exercise, weight management and stopping smoking matter as much as the changes below.
Foods that cause inflammation
- Dairy (eggs remain controversial)
- Red meat and processed meat
- Refined carbohydrates: white bread, rice, pastries, pasta
- Deep-fried foods, including French fries
- Sugar-sweetened drinks: soda and fruit juice
- Sugar and corn syrup
- Vegetable and seed oils, margarine and artificial trans fats
- Packaged cakes and cookies
- Excessive alcohol
Foods that counter inflammation
- Green leafy vegetables: spinach, kale, collards
- Fatty fish: salmon, mackerel, tuna, sardines
- Fruit: cherries, blackberries, blueberries, strawberries, grapes, oranges, apples, lemon
- Tomatoes and broccoli
- Nuts: almonds and walnuts
- Olive oil
- Coffee and tea, especially green tea
- Probiotic drinks such as kombucha (beware added sugar)
- Ginger
Supplements and medications
Natural supplements that counter inflammation:
- Vitamin C, a strong anti-inflammatory with many demonstrated health benefits. The liposomal liquid form is the most readily absorbed.
- Turmeric (curcumin)
- Vitamin D
- Fish oil
- Glucosamine and chondroitin
Medications that counter inflammation include aspirin and anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs).
Some supplements and anti-inflammatories need to stop before surgery or after regenerative treatments. Check with your surgeon's team before starting or stopping anything.