San Diego Nutrition and Health

Inflammation is the body’s normal immune response to help it heal when it is injured.  Heat, soreness, swelling, all signs of inflammation indicate the healing process is in place.  For example, when you cut your finger, the area around the wound expands (swells) to make room for the white blood cells that come to combat any bacteria that may be around the wound and to repair ragged tissue with new cells which seal the cut.  In this case, inflammation is a good thing.  What can happen though is that inflammation can overstay its welcome, as one researcher describes it, and can wreck havoc in the body. 

For some people, dairy products can cause an immune response within the body which in turn leads to inflammation.   If you are suffering from inflammation you may want to eliminate dairy products from your diet for 2-4 weeks and see if your conditions improve.  White flour and sugar are other foods that trigger an immune response.  Pay attention to how you feel after eating certain foods and see if you start to notice any patterns.  While it’s not always easy to change one’s diet, if it helps eliminate often painful and bothersome symptoms, a little experimentation is worth it in my book.