5 TIPS TO NATURALLY SOOTHE INFLAMMATION
Does your body hurt? Do you feel fatigued? Is your gut a mess? Do you struggle to sleep?
Is your diet high in trans fat or refined sugar? Are you overweight or obese or have trouble shedding unwanted body fat? Do you suffer from a mood disorder?
These symptoms can indicate heightened levels of dangerous inflammation.
While you might not feel its presence, chronic inflammation slowly hacks away at your health. Linked to diabetes, cardiovascular disease, allergies, joint problems, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), it is a serious problem…
And if you’re looking to add muscle bulk to your frame, inflammation has been shown to induce a loss of skeletal muscle.
How, then, can you reduce your inflammatory load? How might you reduce your level to a healthy norm?
Here are our 5 favorite ways!
Choose an anti-inflammatory diet
Anti-inflammatory foods provide the nutrition needed to quell wayward inflammation. When deciding what to eat, consider:
Healthy fats
Made-made trans fats increase inflammation. However, omega-3 polyunsaturated fats appear to have the opposite effect. So, remove trans-fat rich items from your diet. These include bakery goods like donuts, biscuits, cakes, pies, pastries, microwave popcorn, frozen pizza, and fried foods like French fries and fried chicken. Switch processed seed and vegetable oils for cold pressed olive oil. Consume fresh, wild-caught fish.
Fresh fruits and vegetables
An apple a day does help keep the doctor away!
Many fresh fruits and vegetables are full of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds. Apples, blueberries, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, and cherries are wonderful options!
Choose fiber-rich choices
Fiber — “plant material in the diet which is resistant to enzymatic digestion” — is essential for a healthy gut and a happy, healthy human. This nutrient is also linked to lower inflammation.
As a study published in the journal, Nutrients, found, as intake of fiber rises, markers of inflammation (in this case, IL-6 and TNF-α-R2) decrease.
Fiber-rich foods include fruits, vegetables, legumes, and nuts. Almonds, apples, artichoke, avocado, bananas, Brussels sprouts, carrots, chia seeds, coconut, kale, kidney beans, lentils, oats, pears, quinoa, sunflower seeds are wonderful choices.
Quit junk food
As you can see, anti-inflammatory foods are those provided by nature. It’s important to consider the flip side, too. Halting your intake of inflammatory foods will help to tip the balance in your favor.
Looking for a simple rule?
Junk foods are inflammatory foods. Limit your intake or remove them from your diet.
Make time to exercise
Being physically inactive is a nightmare for your body, as you no doubt already know. But what you may not be aware of is that a sedentary lifestyle is inflammatory. The reverse is also true.
An article published in the journal, Nature Reviews Immunology, noted that regular exercise has anti-inflammatory effects. This appears due to a reduction in visceral (belly) fat mass, which decreases the release of pro-inflammatory chemicals called adipokines, and triggering an anti-inflammatory state.
Note: Intense, long lasting exercise can be inflammatory. But there is a sweet spot! As other research suggested, “Moderate exercise or vigorous exercise with appropriate resting periods can achieve maximum benefit.” With a little planning, you can gain the benefits of exercise without the risk of damage.
Choose an exercise you love! It’ll be easier to stick to and more fun.
Drink green tea
Do you love a hot cup of green tea? If not, it’s time to develop the habit.
This ancient brew contains compounds that protect against inflammation. As such, green tea and tea catechins safeguard against inflammatory diseases. They do this by acting as potent antioxidants that scavenge reactive oxygen species (ROS)…
ROS is defined by the National Cancer Institute as:
A type of unstable molecule that contains oxygen and that easily reacts with other molecules in a cell. A build up of reactive oxygen species in cells may cause damage to DNA, RNA, and proteins, and may cause cell death. Reactive oxygen species are free radicals.
These chemical compounds are infinitely damaging. Yet, by regularly drinking green tea you help to keep inflammation within healthy limits and ward off harm.
Three to four cups per day is often recommended.
Reduce your stressors
Do you feel stressed? Is life incessantly busy, with little downtime? Are you always under the pump?
Then it’s time to take action.
In the modern world you are unlikely to come face to face with a hungry tiger. However, our biology is designed for such an eventuality. We are still prepped to survive. So, stressors — even ones that aren’t immediately life-threatening — trigger the fight or flight response.
This autonomic reaction alters a vast number of processes in your body; each one aimed at aiding survival. Stress-related changes occur in your cardiovascular, digestive, hormonal, muscular, nervous, reproductive, and respiratory systems. Part of this adaptation includes elevated inflammation.
But, the fight or flight response is meant to be temporary. It is supposed to save your life and then return to baseline. Unfortunately, life’s stressors and stress tend to be unrelenting. This can result in low-grade inflammation; you can be stressed and inflamed without truly being aware. Herein lies the problem…
See, “Excessive inflammation plays critical roles in the pathophysiology of the stress-related diseases.”
Because stressors are ubiquitous, you need to take proactive and regular steps to calm psychological tension. For example:
— Daily meditation
— Mindfulness
— Practice deep, slowed breathing
— Walk
— Enjoy Yoga or Tai Chi classes
— Schedule fun
— Prioritize sleep
— Journal
— Spend quality time with loved ones
— Laugh!
— Get creative
— Supplement
And on that note…
Supplement with a potent, science-backed anti-inflammatory
Sensible, science-backed supplementation offers a number of benefits. The right nutrients calm stress, quell inflammation, and nourish the body and mind.
Our popular product, X-Factor, had been formulated with this in mind. It contains:
Astaxanthin: This carotenoid has been clinically proven to boost your resistance to oxidative stress and decrease inflammation in the body.
Lutein: Provides antioxidant defense and decreases inflammation.
Vitamin A: Has been shown to decrease inflammation.
Vitamin E: Reduces oxidative stress and decreases inflammation.
As our happy customer Israel C said, this product “Helps a lot with inflammation.”
Get started on X-Factor here.
The takeaway
Many people have higher inflammatory levels that they realize because, well, life! But simple steps taken regularly can make a profound difference…
Follow an anti-inflammatory diet, make time to exercise, drink green tea, reduce your stressors, and supplement with X-Factor.
Remember: To be well, your level of inflammation needs to be in control. These steps matter greatly!