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Anti Inflammatory Herbs and Natural Sources

By Ben Mester

Republish: EasyPublish™
Published: 01Nov2010
Word count: 625
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Anti inflammatory herbs are a really interesting concept in the world of natural health. The reason why is because they're a nice middle ground between an all out anti inflammatory diet, and having no anti inflammatory foods in your diet at all, such as is consistent with the Standard American Diet. Foods in general are said to either be anti inflammatory or pro inflammatory. As you can imagine, pro inflammatory foods will increase the amount of inflammation you experience in different parts of your body, will increase the pain of it, and may also increase your risk of chronic disease. Things like junk foods, fast foods, sugar, processed foods and high fat meats are at the top of the list of anti inflammatory foods. There are many diet plans that center on ridding our diets of foods that promote inflammation and filling our diets with anti inflammatory foods.

But that seems a bit excessive. That's why I love the idea of anti inflammatory herbs. They're a nice middle ground in the world of inflammation, allowing you to stay healthy in that arena without putting too much of a focus on inflammation in general. Regularly eating some form of natural anti inflammatory foods is key because it helps reduce the risk of things like arthritis and chronic autoimmune diseases. And since herbal concoctions are usually very strong, anti inflammatory herbs are a great thing to add into regular meals, or just to take in supplement form.

Herbs generally have a wide variety of health benefits, and because inflammation is a somewhat complex process in the body, herbs can affect inflammation in different ways. Inflammation, when carried too far, can become a form of autoimmune disorder. It starts when negative stimuli causes an activation of white blood cells in order to protect the affected area. Inflammation is necessary to the healing process, but chronic inflammation can cause lots of long term problems and is often excessive, like an allergic reaction.

Here are some of the best, most powerful anti inflammatory herbs:

1. Turmeric. Turmeric is a spice that's used often in Indian food. Though it has many other medicinal benefits, turmeric is a powerful anti inflammatory herbs. But it takes a bit of time to start working, so if you don't like the taste of turmeric, you might want to think about taking it in capsule form.

2. Ginger. Ginger is another spice widely used in Asia. This spice, like turmeric, has a powerful flavor and takes some time to have effect in the body. Ginger can be used in a wide variety of foods and drinks, so getting enough of it in your diet shouldn't be too difficult. You can drink ginger tea, ginger ale, use ginger in baked goods and spice meats with it.

3. Omega 3 Essential Fatty Acids. Though these aren't technically herbs, omega 3 essential fatty acids are something that everyone needs more of in their diets. They're not only anti inflammatory, they have a range of other medicinal benefits all across the body.

4. Licorice. Licorice is another herb that is very effective in the world of anti inflammation. This too is a great herb to take because of its diversity. Licorice can be eaten with just about anything, tea, candy, baked goods, meats, vegetables and more, which makes getting a good daily dose of licorice easy.

5. Mangosteen Juice. Mangosteen is a fruit native to Asia that has very powerful anti inflammatory properties. Mangosteen juice has become very popular among people suffering from arthritis and has a very good flavor. Many people substitute it for orange juice in their morning breakfast.

A few others worthy of note are:

Pineapple juice
Chamomile
Black Seed Oil
White Willow
Red and Black Pepper
St John's Wort
Cilantro
Cinnamon
Garlic
Cloves

Anti inflammatory herbs are a great addition to any diet. For more about inflammation and related issues, check out my article on juice for arthritis.

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