How to conquer inflammation & why the world shouldn't be scared of it
What are your thoughts on inflammation? When you think of it, does negative thoughts surface? Inflammation is defined as "a localized physical condition in which part of the body becomes reddened, swollen, hot, and often painful, especially as a reaction to injury or infection."
Inflammation has become the latest buzzword in the health and fitness world with every TV doctor and Instagram health guru proclaiming how YOU should be on x, y, z diet/product/supplement because inflammation is bAd and it's causing you to gAiN WEigHt and gET sICk!
OH NOOOOOOO...
Okay, so lets set the record straight. There are two types of inflammation, localized and systematic. Problem is, most health gurus speak about inflammation like it's a one size fits all thing...and it's not.
If you get any kind of acute injury, allergic response or muscle damage (like from working out) those are forms of LOCALIZED inflammation which is the body's natural response to repair itself. In other words, every time you get sore from the gym, you shouldn't be freaking out since a lot of gurus will say "higher levels of inflammation lead to increases in cancer cells." Tell these people to politely stop talking.
Systematic inflammation is the version most people get concerned over since this is the version where inflammatory markers are raised within our blood due to chronic stress, infections and diseases. To save you the time, scientific studies have shown that there is no ideal diet for reducing inflammatory markers. Should food quality be the priority with the majority of your meals being filled with items that carry a lot of vitamins and minerals, absolutely! But to say "Carnivore/Keto/Intermittent Fasting/etc" is best for reducing inflammatory markers, that would be wildly incorrect and should be categorized as misinformation.
However, studies have concluded that if your goal is to reduce chronic inflammation, the best way to do this is via fat reduction (which is different than just weight reduction) since fat tissue has been shown to increase inflammatory markers. Test groups have shown that individuals that increase food quality, sleep more and regularly exercise have healthier biomarkers than those that don't.
So, if you're suffering from acute or random cases of soreness or inflammation, it's a high probability that you have nothing to worry about. Simply stay hydrated, get your rest, stretch, eat high quality foods and you should be alright within a few days. If lab results reveal to your doctor that there is concerns over your inflammatory markers, that is when we should be prioritizing stress management, sleep, and fighting potential infections.
If you're struggling with inflammation or just have some questions, feel free to drop a comment and I'll be sure to respond. Have a great week!
Citations:
Inflammation not different between healthy diets that vary in macronutrients:
Inflammation not different between plant vs. animal proteins when macronutrients are equated:
Inflammation not different between ketogenic diet and low fat diet when calories are equated:
Sugar intake does not increase inflammation in absence of weight gain:
"Coach Taz" aka Taylor Rodriguez is the owner and head coach of Taz Fitness & Nutrition. He is a Personal Trainer & Nutrition Coach located in Deltona, FL that coaches individuals online and in person. Taylor was a former partying pro wrestler turned fitness enthusiast after the economic downturn of 2008-2010. After losing almost 70 lbs, his new passion is to help struggling individuals find new confidence within themselves to achieve any goal that they see possible. To begin coaching with Taylor or to request a free consultation, contact us today.
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