By Jennifer Whitmire, MS, MEd, MH, CHES, NEP

When I was first diagnosed with Graves’ disease, I thought something in my body was broken. I was told that my body was attacking me for no reason. I thought my symptoms were “normal.” I didn’t realize my anxiety, agitation, racing heart were related to illness! I thought it was my personality, something passed down genetically.

Once I had a label for it, no one could explain why. The doctor actually told me that no one knows why this happens; it’s just the luck of the draw?!

I didn’t know then what I know now. My body wasn’t attacking me! It was protecting me. It was inflamed.

Inflammation is an alarm system. It’s your body saying, “Something’s wrong. Please pay attention.” It’s waving the white flag.

The Purpose of Inflammation

Inflammation is how your body repairs itself. When you cut your finger or fight off an infection, inflammation rushes in with white blood cells, nutrients, and signaling molecules to protect and heal.

That kind of inflammation is localized. It’s short-lived and incredibly intelligent. Once the job is done, the body cools things down and returns to balance. You cut your finger, it scabs over, it heals over a week or two, then you can hardly tell you got cut. Amazing!

When inflammation never turns off, when your body keeps sending “Danger! Danger!” messages even after the threat is gone, that’s when problems begin. That’s called chronic or systemic inflammation, and it’s the fire behind nearly every chronic disease, including all autoimmune disease, arthritis, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, and even depression.

Is her pain only in her hand, or is it from somewhere else in the body (systemic)?

Localized vs. Systemic Inflammation

Not all inflammation behaves the same.

Localized inflammation is your body’s first responder. You twist your ankle, and it swells. You cut your finger, and it clots. That’s healing in progress. The immune system brings heat, blood flow, and white blood cells to the scene to protect, clean up, and rebuild. Once the repair is complete, inflammation subsides and your body resets.

Systemic inflammation, on the other hand, is like an alarm that never shuts off. The sirens keep blaring, not just in one joint or tissue, but throughout your entire body. You might not see it, but you’ll feel it:

• Fatigue that never quite lifts
• Brain fog that slows your thinking
• Bloating, stiffness, or that vague “puffy” feeling
• Mood swings or anxiety that you can’t explain
• For me, it usually shows up as heavy legs and eye swelling

Systemic inflammation can simmer for years, even decades, before a diagnosis. It’s like rust forming beneath the surface. It’s slow, silent, and destructive.

Localized inflammation heals you.

Systemic inflammation wears you down.

The goal isn’t to eliminate inflammation. It’s to help your body resolve it. Don’t try to stop it. Help your body do what it is designed to do.

The Real Root of Chronic Inflammation

When your alarm system gets stuck in “on” mode, there’s always a reason. Here are the most common reasons I see in my clients:

1. Leaky gut and immune imbalance – When the gut lining becomes permeable, food particles and toxins slip through. This triggers an immune reaction every time you eat.
2. Blood-sugar swings – Spikes and crashes in glucose raise cortisol and flood the body with inflammatory compounds called advanced glycation end products (AGEs). Guess what? AGEs age you.
3. Toxin overload – Chemical exposures, mold, heavy metals, and pesticides increase DNA damage and stifle detox pathways.
4. Chronic stress – Elevated cortisol lowers immune response, slows digestion, and keeps inflammation smoldering.
5. Sleep deprivation – Even one night of poor sleep raises inflammatory cytokines like IL-6 and TNF-alpha.

It’s never just one thing. Inflammation is the sum of thousands of small signals your body is trying to process. The trick is to stop adding to it.

Food To The Rescue

Food is medicine. Every bite of food you eat either adds fuel to the fire or helps put it out.

How many of these do you eat daily?

• Cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale): support detoxification and lower inflammatory cytokines.
• Berries, pomegranate, cherries: rich in polyphenols that reduce oxidative stress.
• Flax, chia, hemp, and walnuts: omega-3 precursors that lower inflammatory eicosanoids.
• Turmeric and ginger: downregulate NF-κB, your body’s master inflammation switch
• Rosemary and thyme: contain rosmarinic acid and thymol which reduce free radicals and protect immune cells.
• Green tea: provides EGCG to balance immune cell activity and improve metabolism.

We have access to some of the most powerful anti-inflammatory foods and herbs available. Are you choosing them? Do you need help learning and understanding how to add these foods to your routine? Let me know! Reach out, or better yet, join me inside the CulinaryHealingCircle.com membership.

Even your cooking method matters! Slow roasting, steaming, or lightly sautéing preserves nutrients and prevents the formation of pro-inflammatory compounds found in overcooked or charred foods.

Anti-Inflammatory Golden Broth

This is a fabulous go-to healing drink when you’re feeling puffy, sore, or run-down. It’s a warm, soothing elixir that supports digestion, liver detox, and immune calm.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1-inch piece fresh ginger, sliced
• 1-inch piece fresh turmeric (or ½ teaspoon ground)
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 lemon, juiced
• Handful fresh parsley or cilantro
• Pinch black pepper (to enhance turmeric absorption)

Directions:

1. Add broth, ginger, turmeric, and garlic to a medium pot and bring to a simmer.
2. Simmer for 10 minutes. 
3. Strain, add lemon juice and herbs, and sip warm.

Turmeric and ginger are anti-inflammatory. (We use ginger as a pain reliever in our house). Garlic boosts immune defenses, but most of the medicinal benefits are lost in cooking. You can always grate a little on top of your broth or add a little garlic juice. Lemon supports detoxification, and parsley adds minerals. This is gentle, grounding, and feeds all of your cells. It’s perfect for days when your body feels “loud.”

The Mind–Body Connection

Here’s something most people miss: inflammation is physical, and it’s emotional.

Your immune system listens to your thoughts and feelings. Do you pay attention to your self-talk? What are you telling your body?

Chronic stress, resentment, or grief can trigger the same inflammatory messengers as sugar or toxins. The body doesn’t distinguish between emotional and physical threats.

When I started paying attention to my emotional inflammation, pushing too hard, saying yes when I meant no, or living in fear, I realized my symptoms were a part of my feedback loop.

True healing means calming both the body and the mind.

Practices like deep breathing, laughter, gentle movement (yoga, qi gong, stretching), time outside in the sun, and real rest are part of your anti-inflammatory toolkit.

Turning Down the Volume

You can’t heal what you’re still fighting. When you stop seeing inflammation as an enemy and start seeing it as a communication signal, everything changes.

Inflammation is your body waving the white flag. It’s how it says, “Something’s off. Please listen.”

And when you do, when you swap sugar for real food, stress for stillness and relaxation and presence, toxins for clean foods, clean water, and clean bath products, your body responds in kind.

Simple Daily Habits to Cool Inflammation

1. Start your day with warm lemon water or golden broth.
2. Build every meal around vegetables, beans, and greens.
3. Get outside daily. Did you know sunlight lowers inflammatory markers.
4. Go to bed before 11 PM to support repair cycles.
5. Practice calm: laughter, prayer, journaling, or stillness.
6. Ditch refined sugar and ultra-processed foods.
7. Reconnect with gratitude. Your body responds to love.

Join Me Inside The Culinary Healing Circle

If this message resonates, come join me inside The Culinary Healing Circle.

This month’s theme is Nourishment & Gratitude: Supporting Immune Strength and Digestion as the Holidays Approach. This is exactly what your body needs to restore balance before the holidays.

Inside, you’ll get two live cooking demos, a masterclass on Calming the Mind, Nourishing the Body, and Staying Centered, live Q&A and open coaching, and a supportive community that gets it.

The goal is to help your body feel safe enough to stop shouting.

Join The Culinary Healing Circle