Food is one of the most reliable tools available for lowering inflammation.  This is because:

• Nutrients in food make up the structural building blocks of our tissues
• Nutrients in food make up the functional elements that regulate our inflammatory and our repair systems

Inflammation is a natural process that we need in order to repair injured tissue.  The problem arises when inflammation persists or remains for long periods.  Food contains many elements that help us regulate our inflammatory potential.  In other words, the foods we choose to eat every day will determine, in large part, the tendency of our body to remain in balance or to drift toward an inflammatory state. Once in that inflammatory state, it takes time and healthy eating habits to return to normal.

When you have joint pain and inflammation, your goal will be to lower the overall inflammatory potential that exists within your body.  There are many tools at your disposal that will help you do this and diet is among the most powerful.

The discussion of anti-inflammatory foods is a lengthy one, but we will introduce the basic concepts here. Then you can explore other parts of this site to gain more detail on foods that help you bring overall inflammation within your control.

Nuts that Lower Inflammation

Natural Aspirin in Your Food

You might not be aware that food is filled with the same compound found in aspirin--salicylic acid.  Years ago, drug companies learned of this molecule in white willow bark.  They made a slight modification to the molecule and now call the compound acetylsalicylic acid.

The idea that our food is filled with aspirin is an interesting concept.  It means that the right dietary choices could provide an anti-inflammatory “background” that protects us from all kinds of ills.  It also means that if you have a diet low in these compounds, you may have a lowered ability to combat inflammation.  

The foods high in salicylic acid (natural aspirin) are generally fruits and vegetables.  For this reason, doctors in Scotland compared the salicylate levels in the blood of vegetarians and non-vegetarians.  Vegetarians were found to have salicylic acid levels that were much higher than non-vegetarians (0.11 micromole per liter vs. 0.07 micromole per liter). Those taking 75 milligrams of aspirin had significantly higher levels (10 micromole per liter).

[Blacklock, CJ, Lawrence, JR, Wiles, D, et al. Salicylic acid in the serum of subjects not taking aspirin. Comparison of salicylic acid concentrations in the serum of vegetarians, non-vegetarians, and patients taking low dose aspirin. J Clin Pathol. 2001 Jul;54(7):553-5.]

Since blood may not be a full reflection of the salicylic acid content of the diet, doctors next measured salicylic acid in the urine of vegetarians, non-vegetarians, and people taking aspirin (75 mg per day).  Once again, the amount of salicylic acid excreted in the urine of vegetarians was much higher (1.19 micromol/24 hours) than in the non-vegetarians (0.31 micromol/24 hours).  This, again, shows the higher concentration of this anti-inflammatory compound in vegetarians.  This may be among the many reasons that vegetarians experience less obesity, less inflammation, and less arthritis than non-vegetarians. 

[Lawrence, JR, Peter, R, Baxter, GJ, et al. Urinary excretion of salicyluric and salicylic acids by non-vegetarians, vegetarians, and patients taking low dose aspirin. J Clin Pathol 2003;56(9):651-3.]

Salicylate Content in Foods