Are you inflamed – achy, sniffly and tired?

Before doing so I need you to understand why inflammation triggers so many of the health problems we want to avoid.

When you injure yourself, pick up an infection or are exposed to something you’re intolerant to, the most common being pollen, wheat or dairy, your body tries to protect you by triggering inflammation. This happens because your cells start producing inflammatory cytokines with strange names (TNF, IL1, IL6 and others) and other inflammatory chemicals such as histamineHistamine is a chemical naturally produced by various cells in the body. A large amount of histamine is produced within mast cells where it forms… and C-reactive proteinProteins are large molecules consisting of chains of amino acids. Proteins are essential nutrients for the human body – they are a building block of… (CRP). These gee up your immune system, trigger hot flushes and fever and put your gut-associated immune system on red alert.

If your immune system gets stuck in this ‘emergency mode’, you can develop an auto-immune disease, such as rheumatoid arthritis, underactive thyroid (Hashimoto’s), SLE and even multiple sclerosis. Also, if your fatThere are many different types of fats; polyunsaturated, monounsaturated, hydrogenated, saturated and trans fat. The body requires good fats (polyunsaturated and monounsaturated) in order to… cells are chocabloc full, your immune system can see them as the enemy and attack.

All this inflammation produces flu-like symptoms, body and joint aches and constant tiredness. Yes, the symptoms of flu are produced by your body, not by the virus. Of course, if you’re allergic to pollen, or eat a food you’re intolerant to, that can be the last straw, tipping you into inflammation. All those symptoms of hayfever – blocked nose, headache, itchy eyes, body aches – are just inflammation.

Calm down and take back control

You can, however, switch off this constant state of inflammation. That’s what painkiller drugs such as ibuprofen are designed to do. But they have their side-effects in gut damage so you have to be careful.

There’s a better way. I call it the two step.

1. Stop doing the things that cause inflammation.

2. Start eating and drinking the things that switch off inflammation naturally.

The things that cause inflammation are:

• exposure to allergens and food intolerances;

• too much alcohol, which damages the gut and taxes the liver, which plays a critical role in inflammation;

• airborne pollution including smoking;

• excess weight;

• misalignment and pressure on joints.

As hay fever season is approaching, it’s worth pointing out that the three most common intolerances are grass pollen, wheat and milk. I have a theory, unproven but which many people have reported effective, that these three which are all connected to grass, may have something in common and if you avoid wheat and milk when the pollen count is high, you may not reach the tipping point for symptoms. Also, increase my six favourite anti-inflammatories, especially quercitin from red onions.

My six top anti-inflammatory secrets

Olive oil

Good quality olive oil, rich in polyphenols, has so many benefits. Olives provide oleocanthals, which are potent anti-inflammatory painkillers. They give good olive oil that peppery ‘bite’ at the back of the throat and have been shown to lower inflammatory markers (IL-1, IL-6, TNFα) and raise NO (nitric oxide) in a recent study.

But there’s another hero ingredient in good quality olive oil – a polyphenol called hydroxytyrosol. This is an extremely potent antioxidantAntioxidants are substances that protect cells within the body from damage caused by free radicals. They help to strengthen the body’s ability to fight infection… which, among other things, protects LDL cholesterolLDL is short for low density lipoprotein. It is the “bad cholesterol” which collects in the walls of blood vessels, causing blockages. High LDL levels… from oxidation, thus also lowering it,...

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