5 Simple Ways to Reduce Inflammation

“You are what you eat, so don’t be fast, cheap, easy, or fake.” – Unknown

The more I learn about inflammation, the more complex it becomes. There are plenty of ways to reduce inflammation in the body, but most people are not aware they have any. Trust me, you have inflammation. The question is “to what extent?” which we don’t always know. Taking steps to decrease your inflammation will also improve your overall health. I have felt this positive change in my body and heard countless stories of others saying the same. 

So what is inflammation? 

To keep it simple I will break it down into two categories: acute and chronic inflammation:

Acute Inflammation

Acute inflammation is your body’s response to injury or harmful invaders (like bacteria or viruses) which signals your body to increase the white blood cell count to the affected area. This is a healthy sign that your body is working to help heal or fight off an invader. Acute inflammation is generally not a problem.

Chronic Inflammation

Chronic inflammation is characterized by a prolonged or drawn out response to injury or illness in the body, in which the types of cells present change over time. However, your body does not need to experience an obvious disease or injury to develop chronic inflammation. In fact, the inflammation itself can lead to other illnesses, ranging from minor aches and pains, daily fatigue and mental fogginess to more serious illnesses like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and even cancer. The good news is that lifestyle changes and other practices can change this trajectory and reduce chronic inflammation in the body.

Healthy Nachos- Sweet Potato Nachos

Here are 5 simple ways to reduce inflammation:

1. Healthy Diet.

The best thing you can do for your body is focus on a healthy diet.  Personally, I prefer to stay away from any type of fad diet. I believe in avoiding processed foods, and aiming to eat local, seasonal, organic, whole foods whenever possible. Processed foods bear little to no resemblance to their original form. A good example is sugar- sugary drinks, sugary snacks and even sugar substitutes are highly processed and highly addictive. If you can wean yourself off of these highly processed foods (I know, it’s a tough one), you’ll be ahead of the curve with your health. Trust me, it is well worth the struggle. 

Many toxins can be found in the foods you buy, whether from additives, production methods, or from the environment.  Some of these include:

• Pesticides

• Food additives, preservatives and coloring

• Trans Fats

• Mercury

• GMO’s

And the scary list goes on…. Always read your labels and try to avoid foods that contain these toxins

Pro tip: Increasing your water intake and adding some Lemon essential oil is a great way to help your body naturally detox some of these harmful substances.

2. Stress Management

I know we all struggle with this to some degree, but reducing stress is crucial for reducing inflammation.  Simple daily habits like meditation and deep breathing go a long way in reducing daily stress.  I also have some favorite essential oils that work wonders to calm the nerves and manage stress.

• Balance is my favorite essential oil blend for feeling more grounded and less reactionary. 

• Adaptiv (I have been sniffing this on repeat lately) is amazing for reducing anxiety.  

• Wild Orange is super uplifting and will almost never fail to make you smile.  

3. Exercise

Yep, you gotta do it. The key is to find something you truly enjoy, whether that's going to the gym, yoga, pilates, roller skating… just move your body in a way that makes you happy. If you do this, the rest of the steps will come more naturally. You’ll crave healthy food, you’ll feel less stressed and you’ll sleep better. Breathe in some peppermint to get you motivated and for a natural energy boost. Here are a couple of my favorite ways to get moving:

• Taking my dog for a walk around the neighborhood

• Trail running with my friends

• Dancing in the kitchen with my daughter

• Romantic low-tide beach walks

• Mushroom hunting and other types of foraging

4. Better Sleep

There are endless studies emphasizing the importance of quality sleep. Our bodies use sleep as a time to repair, renew and refresh. I used to be one of those people that was proud of how little sleep I could exist on, sometimes none at all. Now I know better, and am proud to get a full night of rest.

There’s a great book called Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker that gives great insights into what sleep can do to improve our lives.

“Walker explains how we can harness sleep to improve learning, mood and energy levels, regulate hormones, prevent cancer, Alzheimer's and diabetes, slow the effects of aging, and increase longevity,” says Goodreads reviewer.

 Here are some helpful tips for better sleep:

• Dim the lights in your house in the evening

• Wear blue blocker glasses when you watch tv in the evening

• Don’t eat close to bedtime or drink caffeine

• Take 2 Serenity softgels and a drop of Copaiba under the tongue (my personal nighttime routine)

• Diffuse Lavender, Cedarwood and/or Serenity essential oils.

• Have sex (I read this was really helpful!)

5.  Incorporate helpful herbs and supplements

One of my favorite herbs for inflammation is Turmeric. Turmeric is a really powerful ally, as it modulates inflammation extremely well, leading to many positive benefits for a wide range of chronic issues. I love the doTERRA Turmeric capsules, because you get both the oil and the powder (the tumerones and the curcuminoids).  The two together make it entirely bioavailable to your body, so it is able to carry out its therapeutic functions, unlike many supplements on the market.

I also highly recommend doTERRA’s Lifelong Vitality, which is full of essential nutrients, metabolism benefits, and powerful antioxidants designed to help promote energy, health, and lifelong vitality. People who take them regularly report better sleep, reduced stress, and more energy.

This is a broad, introductory description of inflammation and things you can do to reduce it in your body. We are deserving of vitality and health and all the beauty life has to offer. I hope you’ll join me in this journey to live our best and healthiest lives.

If you are interested in learning more about the essential oils and the supplements I mentioned, please send me an email (hello@afistfulofflowers.com). I love talking essential oils!