Recently published in the journal of the American college of cardiology (JACC), a study said on green leafy vegetables, carrot, tomato, whole grains, fruits, nuts, fatty fish, olive oil, and other foods rich in antioxidants and vitamins can help healthy inflammatory reaction, and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
However, red meat and over-processed foods can contribute to chronic inflammation in the body, increasing the risk of heart disease and stroke. The study followed nearly 166,000 women and 44,000 men over a period of 24 to 30 years.
The study found that those whose diets favoured red and processed meats (such as bacon and sausages), sweets and processed foods had a 28 per cent higher risk of stroke and a 46 per cent higher risk of heart disease.
The study’s lead author, School of Public Health, Harvard university Zeng Xi Chen (Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health) nutrition and epidemiology discipline research scientist Li (Dr. Jun Li) think the study is very unique, because it does not verify the role of certain combinations of food, instead will focus on the joint action of combination of 18. “This suggests that it is best to predict the eating habits associated with inflammatory conditions. Foods associated with high levels of inflammation are red meat, offal, processed meat products, refined grains, sugary beverages and low-energy (dietary) carbonated beverages. Foods associated with lower levels of inflammation are leafy greens, dark yellow vegetables, fruits, whole grains, tea, coffee and wine.”
Li said the findings were “very strong” even after controlling for complex factors such as high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes and other chronic health problems, the use of multivitamins, various drugs such as aspirin and other anti-inflammatory drugs, and blood pressure and lipid-lowering drugs.
Dr Ramon Estruch, a professor of medicine at Barcelona University, said: ‘These protective effects can also be applied to other chronic diseases that are highly prevalent and associated with chronic inflammatory responses, such as diabetes, cancer, depression, cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease.’ Estelucci also believes that when choosing specific foods in your diet, you should take into account whether they have inflammation-promoting or anti-inflammatory effects.
There’s no cause and effect, right?
Megan Meyer, director of scientific communications at the International Food Information Council (IFIC), who was not involved in the study, said the study could not establish a cause-and-effect relationship between Food and these diseases. “Eating habits can be assessed using the food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). But one of its limitations is that it’s associated with a lot of recall bias. People have difficulty remembering what they eat, and/or tend to underreport or overreport ‘unhealthy’ foods.”
Also was not involved in the study of nutrition communication, senior director of the international food information council, a registered dietitian Chris sol reed (Kris Sollid) said that although the research on the food frequency questionnaire and inflammatory markers associated with uniqueness, but its recommendations of diet and the proposal is not a big difference in the dietary guidelines in the United States. Soled said the dietary guidelines encourage people to limit their intake of sugar, saturated fat and sodium, and to choose healthier alternatives.
How does food cause inflammation?
Although researchers do not yet fully understand the biological ways in which food affects inflammatory pathways. But researchers believe that sugar and processed foods in the diet, along with pollution, cigarette smoke, radiation and drugs, can trigger the activation of free radicals in the body, which can lead to cell damage and disease.
Unfortunately, almost all of today’s diets are dominated by overprocessed, high-fat foods, sugary drinks, and red and processed meats, all of which can consistently cause high levels of inflammation in the body.
In fact, the study also found that chronic inflammation caused by diet has been linked to cancer, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, depression, Alzheimer’s disease and many other diseases.
A diet rich in unhealthy ultra-processed foods may even shorten a person’s life. Previous studies have shown that an increase in unhealthy consumption of ultra-processed foods (only 10%) is significantly associated with an increased risk of death from all causes (14%).
The good news is that the study found that anti-inflammatory ingredients such as vitamins, carotenoids, and flavonoids, found in foods such as fruits and vegetables, neutralize free radicals and reduce their stress on the body.
Therefore, the diet should focus on leafy greens, tomatoes, fruits, nuts, fatty fish, olive oil and other foods that promote a healthy inflammatory response, while limiting the following foods: ice cream, cookies, pastries, cereal bars and cakes; Prefabricated pies, pastas and pizzas; Poultry and fish; Red and processed meats — bacon, sausages, hot dogs, etc.; Sugary drinks and fruit-flavored drinks; So-called “healthy” and “slimming” foods — powdered or “fortified” meal replacements and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
Recent Comments