Preventing Summertime Inflammation: Here’s What To Do

Inflammation

As temperatures rise this month, so will your chances of getting sunburned and dehydrated – both of which increase the level of inflammation in your body.

Inflammation is the body’s reaction when we become injured or unknown invaders enter our system. A healthy immune system is fighting to keep out infection at all times but when the immune system becomes overactive or defective, inflammation begins.

Did you know that inflammation is often the cause of many health conditions like heart disease, Alzheimer’s, and rheumatoid arthritis? Inflammation can also worsen symptoms of other health conditions. So how do you control your body’s inflammation?

Here Are Six Ways To Prevent Summertime Inflammation

  1. Eat Foods That Reduce Inflammation
    • Eating anti-inflammatory foods is very easy! All you need to do is increase the fruits and vegetables you eat which in effect increases the amount of polyphenol in your diet. According to the founder of the Kahn Center for Cardiac Longevity, “Polyphenol-rich foods found in fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds are a pharmacy to enhance your bodies “chemistry set”, moving the needle away from inflammation and disease and toward healing and vitality”. You can even try eating all the colors of the rainbow by including blueberries, eggplant, red onion, spinach, yellow peppers, carrots, and tomatoes into your diet. 
  2. Lessen Your Sugar Intake
    • Whether it’s sugary junk food, processed food, or just too many carbohydrates… it’s time to cut back! Why? Because when you eat these foods, the quick sugar peaks in your body directly cause inflammation. Plus, you’ll probably lose weight from this endeavor too which is an even better bonus.
  3. Consider Eliminating Gluten & Dairy From Your Diet
    • Interestingly enough, whether or not you suffer from celiac disease, gluten is inflammatory to many of us. In the same way that gluten can cause issues in our body, cow’s milk is also aggravating to some. Try removing these two from your diet for a short period of time and see if you begin to feel any better.  
  4. Engage In Stress-Relieving Exercise
    • Meditation, yoga, mindfulness, and light exercise is essential to lowering your body’s inflammation. Whereas intense exercise actually increases inflammation.
  5. Add Adaptogens To Your Diet
    • Adaptogenic herbs like ashwaganda or ginseng are known to stabilize you which helps to decrease the impact stress has on your body. These herbs also help to improve your entire body’s resistance to stress. Why is this important? Stress is one of the top inflammation aggravators. 
  6. Get More Sleep
    • It’s been reported by the CDC that American’s don’t sleep enough. Lack of sleep lessens the body’s ability to fight infection, meanwhile acquiring an adequate amount of sleep each night results in an anti-inflammatory effect.

How will you lessen the effects of inflammation in your body this summer? Don’t forget to consult with a doctor before making any of these changes to your diet. For a full list of reviewed and approved healthcare providers in your area please visit www.OHTopDocs.com.


Sources: https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/4-simple-ways-to-reduce-inflammation-this-summer | https://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-27327/how-to-tell-if-you-have-inflammation-5-things-to-do-to-fix-it-a-doctor-explains.html | https://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-16945/the-8-best-ways-to-prevent-inflammation.html | https://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-17145/10-best-polyphenolrich-superfoods-why-you-should-be-eating-them.html