Inflammation Score

Most people need some feedback to monitor the impact of their diet and exercise on their health. I tried to point out some of the major contributors to chronic inflammation with a little check list. See how you score (choose one of the list for each category) and give me your feedback on the how you think each part contributes to inflammatory diseases.

Fat Content ____
lean 0
extra abdominal fat 4
obese 8

Carbs ____
small meals, no cereal for breakfast 0
fistful of starch with each meal 2
pasta/rice/potato as a meal 4

HFCS ____
high fructose corn syrup banned from your diet 0
don’t avoid HFCS, but avoid soft drinks 2
have replaced sucrose with HFCS, enjoy soft drinks 4

Unsaturated Fats ____
have removed vegetable oils (except olive oil) from your kitchen 0
use canola oil 2
have replaced saturated fats with corn oil 4

Trans fats ____
eat no trans fats 0
avoid trans fats on your chips 2
don’t know what trans fats are 4

Fish oil ____
supplement with two or more fish oil (DHA/EPA) capsules per day 0
eat at least two helpings of oily fish per week 2
avoid all fish products 4

Antioxidants ____
know that coffee, tea and chocolate are good sources of vegetable antioxidants 0
eat five servings of fruits and veggies 0
take vitamin C supplement, because you avoid veggies 2
avoid veggies; meat and potatoes type 4

Exercise ____
take a stroll after meals and maintain your muscle mass 0
run when you feel guilty 2
couch potato 4

If you smoke, add an extra 15 points

Add ‘em up. How much are you stoking the inflammation furnace?
0-5 Cool! You will never look your age.
6-10 You are getting warm. Hope that you don't have any genetic predispositions to disease.
11-15 You may postpone inflammatory illness until middle age. The flame is lit. Pick your disease.
16-25 If you aren’t showing a chronic disease, you will soon.
26+ You can reverse your disease symptoms with the inflammatory diet and exercise.