There are many ways to reduce inflammation through your diet, but none of them will work for everybody. Hatty Willmoth writes.

Inflammation is a useful tool in the body’s arsenal, helping it heal from injury and infection. Yet when inflammation lingers, it can become chronic.

Chronic inflammation can lead to conditions such as arthritis, or contribute to weight gain, obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart problems such as heart disease, and even skin conditions like psoriasis.

It’s this type of inflammation that can be tackled with good nutrition. There have been whole books written on the subject, and there are lots of different ways a diet can aim to address inflammation.

Plant-based anti-inflammatory diets

One way to eat an anti-inflammatory diet is to include an abundance of plant foods rich in beneficial plant-derived chemicals called phytonutrients.

A ‘phytonutrient’ is just a chemical or compound produced by plants that is beneficial to human health. There are many different types – for example, flavonoids (in berries), resveratrol (in grapes) and phytoestrogens (in chickpeas).

Phytonutrients are generally considered to be anti-inflammatory because of their antioxidative properties.

Antioxidant-rich foods may help reduce internal wear and tear caused by natural chemical reactions that happen in the body.

Whilst these processes help to keep us alive, they also result in the production of free radicals: highly reactive molecules that can cause damage internally, called oxidative stress.

Antioxidants neutralise these free radicals, thereby limiting the inflammation that they might cause.

Therefore, a diet rich in antioxidant phytonutrients might be a good way to reduce inflammation in the body.

This could be as simple as eating more fresh fruits, vegetables, legumes, and wholegrains, or it could be more targeted, focusing on plant foods that are particularly high in antioxidants, such as berries, cherries, red grapes, kale, artichokes, spinach, chickpeas, spices and cacao.

Essential fatty acids and omega-3

But there are plenty of other avenues to an anti-inflammatory diet – such as essential fatty acids.

Essential fatty acids are healthy fats that have multiple functions throughout the entire body, and they’re especially important for brain health. The two main fatty acids to bear in mind are omega-3 and omega-6.

Omega-3 and omega-6 compete with one another, so we need a balance of both of them for good health.

According to some experts, a ratio of between 1:3 and 1:5 is thought to be ideal, with ‘1’ representing omega-3.

However, the typical Western diet contains very high levels of omega-6 – up to 1:15, according to some estimates.

Generally, foods high in omega-6 fatty acids are associated with a more pro-inflammatory effect, whilst those rich in omega-3 are considered anti-inflammatory.

If you eat fish, a fantastic source of omega-3 is fatty fish: salmon, mackerel, trout, sardines, herring, etc. Otherwise, extra-virgin olive oil, walnuts, flax seeds, avocados and olives are great too.

Sources of omega-6 include vegetable and seed oils, foods fried in these oils (especially deep-fried foods) and margarine.

Addressing the balance of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in the diet may therefore help reduce inflammation in the body.

So, focus on getting enough omega-3s, and reducing foods high in omega-6, if required (e.g. swap out sunflower oil for olive oil in your cooking or cutting down on ultra-processed baked goods).

The Mediterranean diet

Those who up their intake of phytonutrient-rich foods, eat more omega-3-rich foods, and crowd out sources of omega-6, may find that their diet resembles a more Mediterranean-style eating pattern.

Versions of a Mediterranean diet can vary dramatically, but broadly speaking, ‘the Mediterranean diet’ as a therapeutic protocol is an eating pattern which seeks to mimic the health-promoting properties of the diets of people living in Mediterranean countries.

The Mediterranean diet is generally high in so-called ‘healthy fats’, i.e. omega-3, and contains plenty of antioxidant-rich plant foods, while being relatively low in refined foods and ultra-processed foods, and often moderately low in carbohydrates.

It’s generally considered to be an anti-inflammatory and has been linked in scientific research to good heart health and a reduced risk of lifestyle diseases such as type 2 diabetes and obesity.

More meat to reduce inflammation

However, the Mediterranean diet is not the only way to reduce inflammation in the body – far from it.

While the Mediterranean diet is a primarily plant-focused eating pattern, some follow a more meat-centric anti-inflammatory diet.

The thinking here is that plants contain natural defences against predators in the form of chemicals that can cause irritation and inflammation when consumed.

Lectins, oxalates and phytates are examples of so-called ‘antinutrients’ that are believed to disrupt the absorption of beneficial nutrients when eaten – and are present in many of the plant foods high in antioxidants, albeit in small amounts.

Some people find they are sensitive to foods that contain these antinutrients – such as beans, which are relatively high in lectins, for instance – and therefore reduce the plant foods in their diet in order to tackle inflammation.

Others find their guts struggle to cope with plants high in fermentable starch: a type of fibre that is not completely broken down in the gut and may begin fermenting in the intestines, leading to uncomfortable bloating, gas, and inflammation, in some people.

Plants contain fibre and antinutrients; animal foods do not. Therefore, some people find they feel better when they eat more animal foods, such as meat, fish, eggs and dairy, and less plant foods, such as vegetables and legumes.

Reducing blood sugar spikes

Another way someone might go about reducing inflammation in the body is by calming the storm of blood sugar fluctuations.

When we eat, the sugars in our food are converted to glucose, and then the hormone insulin is released to take that glucose to be used elsewhere in the body as energy.

Foods high in sugar and refined carbohydrates are converted to glucose quickly, soon after we eat them, which can lead to a sudden surge in glucose entering the bloodstream, and then an urgent need for insulin to remove it.

These blood sugar spikes are also considered inflammatory, so reducing the consumption of high-sugar, low-fibre foods which prompt this response is another way to combat inflammation in the body.

Ultra-processed foods

Another category of foods that are widely thought to be inflammatory is ultra-processed foods.

These can be identified by their extensive lists of unfamiliar ingredients, like emulsifiers, acidity regulators, colourings, flavourings and preservatives.

As well as their high omega-6 content, these modern industrial ingredients may contribute towards chronic inflammation by irritating the gut.

It’s also wise to limit or avoid processed meats, such as sausage rolls and chicken nuggets, as these seem to have a similar effect.

Finding your own inflammatory triggers

However, whilst there are many versions of an anti-inflammatory diet, nothing will work for everybody.

We all react to food differently, so there is no single solution to reducing inflammation in the body.

Some of us might have personal intolerances, and find our body reacts negatively to certain foods: milk and gluten are common culprits.

For people with autoimmune conditions, whose symptoms are exacerbated by inflammation, finding and eliminating these particular foods might be crucial to minimising their symptoms.

A therapeutic elimination programme such as the autoimmune protocol diet (AIP) may prove helpful for these people.

It involves temporarily cutting out any food which may be causing inflammation in the body until symptoms subside, and gradually reintroducing them in a systematic way, to identify which foods might be contributing to autoimmune symptoms.

But anyone wishing to undertake such a restrictive protocol should always consult their doctor or a registered nutritional therapist first.

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