The link between chronic inflammation and weight gain: 4 things to know

The more we learn about serious chronic diseases like heart disease and Type 2 diabetes, the more we appreciate the significant role played by inflammation.

As a result, inflammation has a bad reputation as always being destructive. But that's not always true. Here's what to know about inflammation and how it relates to your health.

What is 'acute' inflammation?

The purpose of inflammation is to protect the body, not harm it, and the inflammatory response arises when the immune system senses a threat. The threat may be to combat an invading virus or bacteria or respond to a wound that needs added resources to promote healing. This is "acute" inflammation.

The affected area, a site of illness or wound, becomes red, swollen, and warm, a result of white blood cells, warriors of the immune system, rushing in, plus the delivery of nutrients, oxygen, and other resources. This situation is temporary, and when the illness is defeated or the wound is healed, inflammation should go away.

What is 'chronic' inflammation?

"Chronic" inflammation is an entirely different matter. It’s more subtle than the huge acute response to an outside threat or injury. In contrast, chronic inflammation has been characterized as a fire in the body that starts slow but keeps growing because there is nothing to stop it. The warrior immune cells that originally invaded the area stick around and over time, they attract more and more immune cells, and this is where the mischief starts.

It’s like a teen party that starts innocently with several friends and is going well. However, when it goes too long and outsiders crash the scene, things get out of hand and much damage can occur. Until recently, chronic inflammation was not respected as a major factor that destroys health, but now we know that curtailing it may be as important to overall health as a good diet and regular exercise.

Does excess body fat promote inflammation?

What is the relationship between excess body fat and inflammation? Several angles are currently being explored, including a faulty leptin response. Leptin is a hormone released from adipose cells (fat storage cells) when they are full, signaling the brain to reduce food intake. You stop eating because leptin provides a feeling of satiety. However, this reaction can backfire in someone who has excessive body fat, and the fat storage cells are overly full.

As fat storage cells get larger, this attracts invasion by immune cells that produce inflammatory chemicals called cytokines. Cytokines can cause several problems, including a slowdown in metabolism that reduces the number of calories expended throughout the day. This increases the storage of body fat, making the problem worse, and resulting in a destructive spiral. More body fat stokes inflammation, which slows metabolism even more, bringing on more body fat, and so on.

In addition to slower metabolism and weight gain, the inflammatory response of producing cytokines can contribute to insulin resistance. Insulin resistance means the cells of the body refuse to respond as they should to insulin and allow glucose to enter the cell. Glucose lingers in the bloodstream, accumulates, destroys small blood vessels and causes other types of damage. When the concentration of fasted blood glucose becomes too high and stays there, the diagnosis is Type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is an extreme form of insulin resistance, the result of excess body fat and inflammation.

Type 2 diabetes is not the only major disease associated with chronic inflammation. Chronic inflammation has been identified as a key player in atherosclerosis (clogging of the arteries). When cholesterol and other agents from the bloodstream invade the arterial wall, they form plaques that can trigger inflammation. In turn, this attracts more immune cells causing more inflammation that expands the plaques, eventually impeding blood flow through the arteries and possibly stopping it completely, causing a heart attack.

Gingivitis, a low-level gum infection typical among folks with poor dental hygiene, especially those who don’t floss their teeth, continually bolsters the inflammatory response by promoting the production and increased activity of immune cells. This can accelerate problems elsewhere in the body, like clogging of the arteries. Thus, the a connection between gum health and heart health.

OK, you get the idea. Inflammation can be a good and helpful thing when it is acute and a response to a threat or injury, but when it becomes chronic and gets out of hand it can be very destructive. There are many causes and contributors to chronic inflammation, but excess body fat is moving quickly to the top of the chart.

How can you prevent chronic inflammation?

Are drugs helpful in combating chronic inflammation? Yes, but you have to be careful. Over-the-counter NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen, naproxen, aspirin, etc.) help reduce chronic inflammation. However, excessive use of NSAIDs can be harmful because they interfere with the production of locally produced hormones that protect the lining of the stomach and intestinal tract. The result is irritation from stomach acids that can cause damage.

Some prescription drugs are effective in combating chronic inflammation, and they don’t produce unwanted side effects on the stomach and intestinal tract because they have different modes of action. Consult your doctor for guidance.

A healthy diet can also combat chronic inflammation. A diet that emphasizes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, seafood, nuts, and seeds while avoiding red meat, sugar, and ultra-processed foods is very helpful.

If you are suffering from insulin resistance, heart disease, or other chronic diseases, there is much you can do to help yourself besides prescription medications. Take steps to reduce chronic inflammation, and topping the list is reducing body fat, especially in the midsection. Eating right not only contributes to fat loss which reduces inflammation, a good diet in and of itself can help combat inflammation.

And, of course, you knew I would mention getting moving. Daily exercise and a good diet go hand in hand to reduce body fat, which in turn reduces inflammation.

Reach Bryant Stamford, a professor of kinesiology and integrative physiology at Hanover College, at stamford@hanover.edu.