Fight Hot Weather Inflammation!
Yes, this blog is all about anti-aging gastronomy, but the
fact is that not only does acid forming food cause inflammation, but other
forces outside our bodies as well. One
of those is the weather. I am not
referring to the old wives tales about joint pain forecasting storms or an impending
cold front, although old wives tales are always based on some truth. No, I am talking about the extreme hot
temperatures plaguing our nation recently.
Here in the upstate of South Carolina, the temperature has been hovering
around 102.
Having moved to the upstate from southern Maine via
Charleston, SC, I expected that it would take my body a few years to adjust to
the climate. Well, it has been more than
a few years, four years to be exact, and I still cannot step outside for more
than a few minutes at a time when the mercury rises above 95. Why?
Not because I sweat or sunburn easily (which I do) or feel faint or show
any signs of heat stroke or exhaustion, nothing that ordinary. It is because whenever I step outside in
temperatures that rise above 95, my bones ache.
Okay, they don’t really ache, but it sure feels like they do.
Stress causes inflammation and exacerbates the symptoms of
inflammation. So, for anyone whose body
has an inflammatory process going on whether in the form of an immune
deficiency disease, a response to an infection, joint swelling or an old injury such as a stress
fracture, the heat will cause a flare up---more
severe symptoms, anything from mild pain to difficulty breathing. That is why my bones ache.
Flare up is an appropriate word considering what the extreme
temperature can do to the body. My first
summer in Charleston, I visited my primary care physician on at least four
occasions with headache, body aches, swelling at the sites of old ankle and
knee injuries and what I felt was a low grade fever, always leaving without a
prescription and with a lecture about staying out of the sun. To me, staying out of the sun meant wearing a
hat when going outside, which I did.
Finally on the fourth visit, I asked her why I always felt like I had a
fever and she responded with, “This is the south. You’re living in Charleston which is a
tropical swamp. The normal body temperature
here in the summer is 99.2, not 98.6.”
That explained everything.
Now, living in the upstate, I am no longer in a swamp, but
the heat is just as severe. The
difference is that I have learned ways to cool my internal temperature and
prevent the stress to my body. To
southerners who have lived here all their lives, it is common sense, but to
someone from Maine, it still takes a concerted effort to remember these five steps
to keep the body cool and stave off the stress that stokes the flames of
inflammation.
Drink ice water and lots of it.
Seems like common sense.
Not to me. I never drank water
with ice in it---too cold. But, here you
need the ice to cool down your core according to the long time residents of
James Island. So, ice water it is!
Take breaks before you need them.
Don’t wait until you feel sick or so hot you can hardly walk
to take a break. And by take a break I
mean get out of the heat and into the AC.
The hotter the temperature, the more frequent the breaks, so today, with
the temperature at 98 in the shade, ten minutes at a time for picking
vegetables was enough for me.
Slow down.
That means slow your movements. Don't run, walk!
Stay inside.
If you don't have to leave the AC, whether in your car, office or home, don't. There is plenty that can be done indoors when the temperature soars.
Eat.
Even though you don't fell like it, you still need to eat. Limit your diet to the alkaline producing foods like cucumbers, tomatoes, grapefruits, watermelon and lots of greens for their high water content and their ability to keep your blood glucose even throughout the day. Add small amounts of protein with some healthy fat from omega 3. Extra salt and sugar are not recommended which means on a day like today, Red Bull is not your friend.
Eat smart and stay cool, America!
Buon Appetito e Buona
Salute, Chef AngelaB
P.S. My current book Eat Smart, America, an anti-aging diet primer is available now for
Kindle on Amazon
All proceeds from my books
will be used to open the first EAT SMART restaurant to serve anti aging
gastronomy in the upstate SC. I am 75%
of the way there with funding. Every
book I sell gets me one tiny step closer.
For your support and generosity---thank you.
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