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Vitamins That Can Help Reduce Inflammation

Whether you suffer from chronic inflammation, a condition in which your body remains in an inflamed state for years, or you are interested in a more preventative approach, there are many reasons why you might seek to find out how you can reduce inflammation. After all, chronic inflammation is tied to many significant negative health outcomes including DNA damage, tissue death, internal scarring, and a number of diseases including cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and more.

All of this being the case, it’s no surprise that there has been an increased interest in recent years from people seeking interventions to reduce inflammation. And in addition to making healthier lifestyle choices, there are also several dietary supplements that have been shown to decrease the inflammatory response. In this article, we’ll share five vitamins and minerals that you can take to help reduce chronic inflammation.

Fish Oil

While they may be smelly, fish oil supplements have been shown to be highly beneficial to your health. They contain omega-3 fatty acids, a compound that your body can’t manufacture on its own, requiring you to get it through your diet. While omega-3s can be found in foods like fatty fish, vegetable oils, nuts, and seeds, it can be challenging to get enough of them in your diet. And if you’re looking for anti-inflammatory properties, omega-3s are a good choice as they have been shown to be able to reduce inflammation.

A good starting point for fish oil supplements is to begin with a dose of 250–500 milligrams per day. It’s worth noting that processed fish oils are less easily absorbed than natural fish oil, and that many people prefer taking fish oil supplements in capsules as it can help mask that fishy smell and flavor. However, fish oil capsules are prone to going rancid, so it’s important to always check the expiration date of your supplement.

Ginger

Ginger, a common spice and condiment, is perhaps most known for its ability to settle your stomach and ease nausea, but it’s actually also great as an anti-inflammatory. Full of beneficial compounds like gingerols, shogaol, and paradols, ginger’s rich phytochemistry makes it a powerful anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative, and anti-microbial tool.

As a medicine, ginger is available in many forms including teas, syrups, chewable tablets, capsules, and liquid extracts. A common dose is 0.5 to three grams per day.

Vitamin D

While vitamin D is most often thought of as a vitamin that is necessary for maintaining strong bones and teeth, its benefits may actually go much beyond that. For example, vitamin D has been shown in multiple studies to be able to reduce inflammation by “regulating the production of inflammatory cytokines and inhibiting the proliferation of proinflammatory cells.” [3]

However, vitamin D deficiency is incredibly common, with most people – especially vegans and people living in colder climates  – not getting enough sun and/or vitamin D-rich foods like oily fish, red meat, liver, and egg yolks to meet their daily requirement of 400 to 800 IU per day.

That’s why nearly everybody can benefit from beginning a regimen of supplementing with vitamin D, which can be found as softgels, capsules, gummies, and chewables. For most people, a quantity of 600 to 800 IU per day is sufficient. In fact, taking too much vitamin D can be toxic, so it’s recommended to never take more than 4,000 IU in a day.

Magnesium

The mineral magnesium, found in foods like leafy greens, nuts, seeds, beans, and whole grains, is crucial to the body’s function, playing a role in regulating blood pressure, keeping bones strong, and maintaining a steady heart rate. Additionally, studies have found that magnesium deficiency can cause inflammation by triggering the release of inflammatory cytokines, acute-phase proteins, and free radicals.

While it is certainly a great idea to try to get your daily recommended 300 to 400 milligrams of magnesium through a healthy diet, many people might prefer to supplement with up to 350 milligrams per day. However, like with vitamin D, getting too much magnesium can be harmful, so it’s important not to exceed the maximum advised levels of magnesium intake, especially if you’re already eating a diet rich in the magnesium-rich plant foods mentioned above.

Resveratrol

Unlike the other vitamins and minerals on this list, chances are high that you may have never heard of resveratrol, a chemical categorized as a polyphenol, which is a compound known to act as an antioxidant. Natural sources of resveratrol in food include the skin of grapes, blueberries, raspberries, mulberries, and peanuts. That’s why many people’s main source of dietary resveratrol is wine.

Resveratrol has been shown to have many benefits to human health, including anti-inflammatory properties that can beneficial effects on cancer and neurodegenerative, respiratory, metabolic, and cardiovascular diseases.

You can get resveratrol supplements in the form of capsules and tablets, most of which contain a quantity of about 250 to 500 milligrams. However, many studies that show the health benefits of resveratrol required participants to take closer to 2,000 milligrams a day. That being said, taking more than 2,500 milligrams a day has been linked to side effects such as cramps and nausea. In short, there is no single recommended dose of resveratrol across the board, and it is recommended to speak to your doctor about dosage if you want to begin supplementing with it.

References

  1. Omega-3 fatty acids in inflammation and autoimmune diseases
  2. Anti-Oxidative and Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Ginger in Health and Physical Activity: Review of Current Evidence
  3. Vitamin D and inflammatory diseases
  4. Taking too much vitamin D can cloud its benefits and create health risks
  5. Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Resveratrol: Mechanistic Insights