Inflammation-Free Diet Plan

The inflammation-free diet plan is a popular trend in dieting today. Many doctors are beginning to believe that many diseases, as well as aches and pains, allergies, even wrinkles, are largely caused by inflammation in the body. Eating to reduce inflammation can not only help people lose weight but can also eliminate some of these symptoms or disorders, experts say.

What is Inflammation?

Inflammation is the body's first response to irritation, infection and pain. It occurs in the immune system as a result of the white blood cells attempting to protect the body from any foreign invaders they sense.

Normally, inflammation is a good thing. It's a sign that your body is fighting off the undesirables and working to heal you. But in some cases, inflammation can be bad news. The body can inappropriately and unnecessarily trigger an inflammation response, which leads to the body attacking its own healthy cells and tissues. This is known as an autoimmune disorder, and there are many different manifestations of this problem, depending on the tissues or organs that are being attacked.

Autoimmune Disorders

Just a few of the disorders thought to be caused by a problem with inflammation include:

• arthritis
• pernicious anemia
• lupus
• multiple sclerosis
• Grave's disease
• Celiac disease

Chronic inflammation can also lead to chronic pain, redness, swollen joints that are warm to the touch, stiffness and loss of joint function. Inflammation problems can feel like the flu, with fever, chills, headaches, low energy, loss of appetite and muscle stiffness.

Inflammation can also attack internal organs, causing shortness of breath, asthma attacks, kidney failure and cramps or diarrhea, depending on the organ that is affected.

The Inflammation-Free Diet Plan

Traditionally, these inflammation-induced health problems have been treated with medication, rest and light exercise to eliminate joint pain. Sometimes surgery has been used to repair joint damage.

But more and more doctors are starting to take a holistic approach to inflammation and are recommending inflammation free diets to their patients to help reduce or eliminate symptoms of chronic inflammation.

The basics sound a lot like other diet plans:

• exercise
• don't smoke
• maintain a healthy weight
• do what you can to manage stress

But the inflammation free diet focuses heavily on the foods that are consumed. The inflammation factor of foods is determined in different ways, including the consideration of:

• amount and type of fat, including essential fatty acids
• amount of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants
• glycemic index score
• content of anti-inflammatory compounds

The more anti-inflammatory foods that are consumed, the less inflammation will be present in the body. Proponents of the inflammation-free diet plan say eating this way can prevent or even reverse autoimmune disorders brought about by inflammation.

The Book

The inflammation free diet has received most of its attention thanks to the book The Inflammation Free Diet Plan by Monica Reinagel. Published in January 2006, the book details the science behind the inflammation free diet and explains how people can alter their diets to reduce inflammation.

The book includes many tables that provide the inflammation "score" of different foods. Foods given positive numbers are anti-inflammatory, while those with negative numbers are thought to aggravate inflammation. The higher the number in either direction, the more dramatic the effect.

The diet does not suggest that any foods be completely eliminated. It does, however, encourage balance between inflammatory and anti-inflammatory foods and a focus on inflammation free foods whenever possible.

Some common foods are ranked on Reinagel's website Inflammation Factor. Here you will learn that a plain bagel has a negative score of 186, meaning it contributes to inflammation. On the other side of the spectrum, three ounces of wild Atlantic salmon has a score of 493, making it a good choice on the inflammation free diet.

Sometimes the ranking of foods can be a little confusing. The same amount of farm-raised salmon, for instance, gets a negative 180 score. How can basically the same food have wildly different scores based on where it was caught? The answer has to do with what the fish ate and the amount of omega-3 fatty acids in the fish when you eat it.

Reinagel admits that some of the numbers don't jibe with other diet advice (she shuns walnuts, for example, for having too much omega-6 fatty acid) but that her plan is the best for those trying to become inflammation free.

Losing Weight on the Inflammation Free Diet

Weight loss is not the emphasis of the inflammation free diet, but that does not mean people don't lose weight on the plan. Many people have reported rapid elimination of swelling, weight loss, reduced blood pressure, less pain and a more youthful appearance after just a few days on the diet.

The inflammation-free diet plan can be helpful for losing weight and eliminating or reducing the pain of inflammation and autoimmune disorders, but it's a good idea to check with your doctor first before starting a new diet plan, especially if you are on medication for your condition.