26 february 2005 www.betternutrltion.com

the battle withinOUR ANTI-INFLAMMATION DIET

by Michael Downey What do paper cuts, spicy foods, stubbed toes and intense

workouts at the gym have to do with your odds of getting

colon cancer, drifting into Alzheimer's or succumbing to a

heart attack? A lot more than you might think.

The more scientists learn about these and other serious

diseases, the more they are being linked with the long-

term effects of inflammation on the body.

The inflammation-disease connec-tion has become a hot researchtopic. And it's abotit to explode.

Vital Nuisancehiflammation is a vital immtmeresponse to infection, injiirv- or irri-tation. It is the basis of humanity'searliest survival.

It's what causes tlte redness inthat paper ent—the result of extrahlood walling off the area and ritsh-ing macrophages, histamine andother bacteria-fighting immune fae-tors to the wound.

The same inflammiitor)' processis what makes your throat bumwhen you decide to impress yourfriends by chugging the extra-spicysuicide sauce—hlood vessels leakfluid, proteins and eells to repair orremove damaged hssues. .^nd fe\eris yet another form of that inflam-matory' burning.

Inflammation sparks the swellingin that stubbed toe—caused byfluid released into the banged-upceils to speed healitig atid eushionthat toe against further injury.

It also eauses that tendernessyou feel after hours at the g\'m —because your itnmune systemrushes fluids to the torn museles toprotect and repair them, eom-pressing sensitive nerve endings inthe proeess.

inflatnniation isolates foreigninvaders and nishes our strongestnattiral infection-fighters to the sitedeemed titider attack. It cleans awaydehris from destroyed tissite; slowsbleeding; starts clotting; and—if tis-sues cannot be restored—producesscar tissue. Without this sophistieat-ed immune response, our specieswotild have died out long ago.

But it's a doubie-edged .suord. Inaddition to its telltale redness, heat,swelling or pain, inflammation cancause serioits dysfrtnction,

Problenis begin when —for onereason or another—the inflamma-tor)' process becomes chronic, per-sisting long after it's needed.

Heart disease researehers werethe first to notice that inflamma-tion can play a role in cardiovas-cular disease.

www.betternutrition.com february 2005 27

the battle within (continued)

Heart MysteryNot long ago, doctors viewed heartdisease as a plumbing problem.Cholesterol levels in the blood gettoo high, and, over the years, fattydeposits elog tlie pipes aud eut offt}ie blood supply.

Tliere's just one problem withthat explanation; Sometimes, it'sdead wrong.

Half of all heart attacks occur inpeople with nonnal cholesterol lev-els and nonnal blood pressure.Something eauses relatively minordeposits to burst, tri^ering massiveclots that block the blood supply.

That something has tumed out tobe inflamniation.

C-reaetive protein (CRP)—ablood measure of inflammation —shoots up during an acute illness orinfection. But CRP is also some-what elevated among otherwisehealthy people. And sttidies showthat those with the highest CRP lev-els have three times the heart attaekrisk as those with the lowest levels,'Hie inflammatory response, possi-bly reacting to cholesterol that hasseeped into the lining ofthe artery,makes even normal fatty depositsunstable.

There are several causes of heartdisease: smoking, high blood pres-sure and, yes, cholesterol. Bnt wemust now add inflammation tothat list.

Runaway ReactionHeart disease is jnst the tip of theinflammation ieeberg. Studies overtbe past conple of years have sug-gested that higher CRP Ie\'els raisethe risk of diabetes. It's too early tosay whetber lowering inflammationwill keep diabetes from developing.But before insnlin v\as isolated atthe University of Toronto in tlie1920s, doctors found that bloodsngar levels could be deereased byusing salieylates, a group of aspirin-like eonipounds known to reduceinflammation.

In the 1860s, Gemian pathologistRudolph Virehow speculated thatcancerous tninors start at the site ofehronic inflammation—basically, awound that never heals. Tlien, inthe middle of the 20"̂ eentury, weeame to understand the role ofgenetic mntations in cancerous tis-sue, 'Ioday, researchers are investi-gating the possibility that mutationsand inflammation work together toturn normal cells into deadlytumors. Redueing ehronic inflam-mation may yet become a preserip-tion for keeping cancer at bay

Defensive Nutrition• oily fish and fish oil

supplements• olive, walnut or flaxseed oil• walnuts, flaxseeds and

soy foods

• fruits and vegetables• red wine• antioxidant supplements• garlie, ginger and turmeric

(enreumin)• sunflower seeds, eggs,

herring, nuts or zinc tablets• pineapple or bromelain

supplements• S-adenosy!-methionine (SAMe)

Researehers have found that peo-ple who take anti-inflammator}'medications—for arthritis, forexample—succumb to Alzheimer'sdisease later in life than those whodon't. Plaque and tangles aeeumu-late in the brains of Alzheimer'spatients. Perbaps the iminnne sys-tem mistakenly sees these abnor-malities as damaged tissue thatshonld be eliminated. Early infor-mation suggests that low-doseaspirin and fish oil capsules—botliknown to reduce inflammation —lower the risk of Alzheimer's.

The cause of asthma is stillvinknown, but some suspect flieiiiilammator\' attack. The treat-

ments that help relieve astlima workby reducing the inflammationinvolved.

Sometimes, for reasons that arenot clear, perfecfly healthy eells trig-ger the body's immune systein. Theinflammatory response is launehedagainst nonnal cells in the joints,ner\'es, connective tissue or any partofthe body. Tliese autoimmune dis-orders inelude rbeuuiatoid arthritis,multiple sclerosis, lnpns, vitiligo,psoriasis and other versions of abody at war with itself KvenCrohn's disease and cystic fibrosisare associated with inflammation.

Some level of inflammatoryimmune reaction is usually presentin our bodies, whether we're awareof it or not. And if inflammationreally is the biological engine thatdrives many of our most feared ill-nesses, it suggests a new and possi-bly nuich simpler way of warding offdisease. Instead of diflerent treat-ments for all of these disorders, sim-ply turning down the degree of onrinflammatory attaek might be a par-tial prevention for all of them.

Dampening the FiresMany attributes of a Westernlifestyle—sueh as a diet high in sug-ars and saturated fats, aeeompaniedby little or no exercise—make itmneh easier for tlie body to beeomeinflamed.

Losing weight helps because fatcells produce cytokines, whiehcrank up inflammation. Thirtyminutes a day of moderate exer-cise dampens the fire as well.Flossing yonr teeth combats gumdisease, another source of chronicinflammation. And, of course, yonshould avoid excess alcohol intakeand smoking.

Despite the injury they can do tothe stomaeh, anti-inflammatorydrugs sueh as aspirin and ibuprofenare often prescribed for treatment ofinflammator)' diseases, but tbey'renot appropriate for prevention. Fish

28 february 2005 www.betternutrition.com

oii capsules have been sliown toproduce the same reduction iniTiflaiiiinaton' cytokines.

Iiitlainniation-promoting prosta-glandins arc made from the transfiits fonnd in partially hydrogeriatedoils. So avoid margarines and veg-etahlc shortenings tliat are madewitii them,

Cletting a good supply of omega-3fatty aeids—and a minimum ofomega-6 fiits—is key to an immunesystem that's not overreaetive. Optfor oily fish such m salmon, sardines,herring and niaekerel; and on daysthat ynn don't ha\e fish, take a fishoil supplement, ^!at walnuts, fi"eshlyground flaxseeds or flax,seed oil andsoy foods. Steer away from safflower,sunflower, com and sesame oils, aswell as polyiinsaturated vegetableoils. Use walnut, flaxseed or extra vir-gin olive oils instead,

Fniits and vegetables are Rill ofanfioxidants that disable free radi-cals and minimize iuflammation.All are good, but you should focusyour diet on those tliat produce thehighest antioxidant activity: blue-berries and kiwi. Consider antioxi-dant supplements such as resvera-trol, grape seed extract, quereetin.pycnogenol or citrus bioflavonoids,as well as beta-carotene and vita-niin,s C and E. .'\iid drink red winein small quantities.

Garlic, ginger and timiicric arenatural anti-inflaiumatory agents.Inelnde tbem in your diet.

Zinc controls inflammationwhile promoting healing. It isfound in snnflower seeds, eggs,nuts, wheat gemi, herring and zincsupplements.

S-adenosyl-methionine (SAMe),alpha lipoic acid and eoenzymeQIO act as inflammation fighters.Also, bromelain—fonnd in pineai>pie and supplements — may reduceinflanimafion.

So if you want to stop Iuflamma-tion, get off that couch and headout to pick up oil)' fish, fresh pro-duce, garlic and supplements. /\ndtry not to stub \our toe on the way.

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