Your diet may be contributing to your joint and muscle pains. Every day, we come across people who are taking or require anti-inflammatory medications to help with their musculoskeletal condition. In many cases, these work very well. However, they can also have very frequent side effects.
Have you ever noticed days where your joints and muscles are sore, and you can't put this down to activity? It may be your diet. Research is building to show that some foods may be causing or contributing to the inflammation in your body.
Our bodies are capable of ingesting varied substances, but some foods provide our bodies with better fuel than others. We often tell people that if we were a machine and we substituted the quality of the fuel in the same way we substitute the quality of our foods, the machine would stop immediately. Imagine muddy water and sand in our car fuel tanks, leading to not only being stuck by the roadside, but also an expensive repair. Some performance cars require higher quality fuels to perform better. The items on the list below are like putting contaminated fuel into your body, and in response to these, your body will react with inflammation.
Types of food that can cause inflammation
- Processed foods: anything in a bright packet, quick junk food.
- Refined sugars
- Trans fats and foods cooked in trans fats: fried foods, bakery items, potato chips, fast food, margarine etc.
- Refined carbohydrates: white bread, pizza, some pasta, pastries, white flour, white rice and sweet desserts.
- Alcohol
- Processed meats: some deli meats, bacon and hot dogs.
- Vegetable oils
If you suspect your diet may be a factor in controlling your body's inflammation, it may be best to try to minimise some of these foods and discuss them with a dietician. Please speak with our team and we recommend someone to help.