Inflammation and the power of nutrition

One of my consultant colleagues in the NHS was teasing me today about overusing the word 'inflammation': my response was that 'it's all about inflammation and the microbiome'. And it really is. Even your doctor may not be there yet.

Inflammation, a bit like stress, is a wonderful thing. That is, it is a wonderful thing when short lived and like a good story, has a beginning, a middle and an end. Inflammation which fails to switch off, or remains chronic (even if less aggressive) is a major contributor to most, if not all, chronic disease processes: type 2 diabetes, skin problems, arthritis, dementia, depression, heart disease and so on.

Some major breakthroughs are being made with medicines which help to lower inflammatory levels in the body: for example, statins have been found to not just lower cholesterol, but also lower cardiovascular inflammation. The problem is that statins have side effects. ALL medications have side effects. And side effects usually lead to more medications and here we enter a slippery slope.

Nutrition has no negative side effects. In fact, it has innumerable positive side effects! And nutrition is a key tool in maintaining a state which can perform brilliantly when acute inflammation is a much needed blessing, but stays cool the rest of the time.

One of my guru-types, Dr Andrew Weil, built an anti inflammatory food pyramid and I love it. See the link below to reach his advice and if you're at the junction of taking medication for a chronic, inflammatory disease, come and see me instead and I'll show you the delicious magic food can do!

http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/ART02995/Dr-Weil-Anti-Inflammatory-Food-Pyramid.html