Massage, Diet and Inflammation

What These Have in Common Might Surprise You!


What massage and diet have in common is the ability to help keep chronic inflammation under control. And controlling it can help your body feel much better.

Inflammation is the body's natural defense system against harmful influences that could damage tissues and lead to cancer, heart disease, diabetes and many other degenerative diseases. Unfortunately, too much inflammation for too long a period of time can also be linked to these very same problems.

There can be many causes of chronic inflammation, and the food we eat plays a significantly large role in the body's ability to regulate it.  Stress is also linked to increased inflammation due to stress hormones, such as cortisol. So, there are two important ways that changes in your lifestyle can directly impact the amount of inflammation your body has to manage.... diet and stress management.

The first part of controlling inflammation is controlling the foods that we eat.  Basically, staying away from all processed, sugary, fried foods is going to go a long way in helping control inflammation. The following foods should especially be on your "eat sparingly or not at all" list:
  • French Fries - and any fried food for that matter.
  • White Bread - stick to whole grains and avoid refined flour.
  • Coffee Creamer - often has trans fat and is loaded with sugar.
  • Doughnuts - refined flour, sugar, fried... need I say more?
  • Second Glass of Wine - a little alcohol might help inflammation, more makes it worse.
  • Bacon - processed saturated fat. 
  • Granola Bars - lots of these have more sugar than a doughnut. 
  • Sweetened Yogurt - eat plain yogurt and add your own fruit.
  • Cereal - Most have refined flour and a lot of sugar.
The second part is stress management. Although controlling external stress is next to impossible, controlling how our body responds to stress can be achieved. Many studies have shown that regular exercise, meditation and having massages are ways to help relieve stress. Not only does massage give a person a sense of well being, but it has been shown to lower blood pressure and induce a deep level of relaxation. This coupled with the pain relieving benefits of having muscle tension reduced has the ability to improve the body's stress management. Regular sessions of massage will provide the most beneficial results.

For more information please contact us!

San Diego Tennis and Racquet Club
4848 Tecolote Road
San Diego, CA. 92110
 Appointments (619) 295-3516 


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