The trick is to listen to your body, be aware of its messages, address inflammation and support good function in the body. Inflammation is the starting point for all dysfunction and disease. Ageless beauty can be achieved by making sure your body is supplied with the correct nutrients, to build cell integrity, quality tissues, which support the proper function of our organs systems.

All of this can be achieved by properly digesting a whole food, nutrient dense diet. Like most things, it is all about quality, we need good quality ingredients and processed fast food just doesn’t cut it! It is so important to listen to our body; symptoms are the messages our body sends to alert us that something is not working properly. We need to get to the root cause of why those symptoms are happening.

When I say inflammation I do not just mean the clever immune process the body has of dealing with a cut finger by inflaming the area in order to heal it. This is an immediate response that deals with the situation and once it is healed the inflammation stops. The kind of inflammation I am referring to is the low level ongoing, chronic inflammation that never stops. This places a constant stress on the body and may contribute to a more serious disease or condition. Causes of low-level inflammation may be:

Gut bacterial or fungal overgrowth. These produce a complex series of symptoms beyond just the gut, but also skin issues and mental dysfunction.

Poor blood sugar management, causing counteractive blood sugar emergency responses – eating a diet high in processed carbohydrates and sugars can lead to a blood sugar rollercoaster ride multiple times a day.

Allergic reactions and food sensitivities. Regular exposures to Reactive foods cause an immediate immune response which results in chronically inflamed tissues from anywhere from the gut, brain or musculoskeletal joints which is why it is so important to remove these foods from your diet and address the underlying causes that are driving these responses in the body.

Stress comes in many forms and is a major contributor to inflammation in our body as it works on many different levels, right from a cellular level to organism level and not just physically but emotionally. The importance of stress management on all levels cannot be understated. On a cellular level it could be due to a lack of antioxidants in your diet. It might be hormonal stress caused by poor blood sugar management, which in turn, causes a cortisol stress response. It might be ongoing stress caused by an injury or illness, and in the case of a chronic illness like Type 2 diabetes it’s a constant source of ongoing stress and inflammation to the body.

Remember it’s the seemingly little niggly symptoms that we put up with every day that are eroding our health and setting us down the path to chronic disease. More importantly there are our early warning signs that we all too often ignore.

Getting to the root cause of your symptoms and supporting your body with nourishing foods that are uniquely right for you will help to reduce inflammation, and keep you looking and feeling glamourous from the inside out.