Anti-Inflammatory Foods in Regenerative Medicine
Did You Know an Anti-Inflammatory Diet Can Help You Heal?
Inflammation is your body’s protective response to a variety of situations. It happens when the white blood cells that protect your body against germs and foreign organisms—and that clear away dead cells after an injury—become too active.
What Is Chronic Inflammation?
When the body’s immune system is overactive and doesn’t return to a normal level of activity, white blood cells attack healthy tissues. Excess fluids also accompany the protective white blood cells that flood these areas, contributing to inflammation.
This can lead to autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus, which can permanently damage the joints, nerves and organs. It also contributes to heart disease and some cancers, as well as Alzheimer’s disease. The excess fluids can overload different body systems, causing stress and requiring your body to work harder than it should.
How Can Foods Affect Inflammation?
By avoiding foods that cause inflammation, you may be able to reduce swelling and excess fluid levels. This is particularly important if you are trying to heal from an injury, if you are battling conditions tied to chronic inflammation or if you are recovering from stem cell therapy, which relies on healthy conditions within the body to work most effectively.
Anti-inflammatory nutrition is not a magic cure, but a more healthful diet may help you reduce inflammation and temper the severity of the conditions it causes. It’s important to realize, though, that eating anti-inflammatory foods does not constitute a popular diet or a regimented eating plan, as you might follow for weight loss.
Instead, you’ll want to:
- Eat foods that are natural, healthful, nutrient-rich and unprocessed.
- Choose foods high in fiber, vitamins, minerals, fatty acids and phytonutrients—like green leafy vegetables, blueberries, pineapple, salmon and walnuts.
- Avoid empty calories, processed foods and those high in added sugar or fat.
As part of a whole-body approach to medicine, an anti-inflammatory diet is often one of the first steps involved in addressing injuries—including post-procedure healing.