Inflammatory Score: What Your Diet Can Tell You

The published Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII) uses 45 food parameters. Its weights come from research on six inflammatory markers, including CRP, IL-6 and TNF-alpha. [1]

It compares dietary intake with an international reference database. Negative scores indicate a more anti-inflammatory pattern; positive scores indicate a more pro-inflammatory pattern. Neither is a diagnosis. [1]

An educational coaching score is not a hormone measurement or diagnosis. Adding symptoms or blood results creates a separate assessment, not the published DII. [1]

In a 12-month trial of 164 adults at high cardiovascular risk, Mediterranean diets supplemented with olive oil or nuts reduced selected inflammatory markers compared with a low-fat diet. [3]

This supports considering the overall eating pattern. It does not show that lowering a diet score will restart fat loss, improve training recovery or extend an individual's life. [3]

Changing logged food intake can change a calculated score. That alone does not demonstrate a change in blood markers, symptoms or long-term health. [1]

Build meals around vegetables, fruit, wholegrains, legumes, nuts and fish. Try leafy greens, berries, oats, lentils, and fresh, frozen or canned salmon or mackerel. [4]

Prioritise fewer sugary drinks and highly processed snacks, less processed meat, and limiting alcohol. NZ guidance supports these changes without assigning a precise inflammatory effect to each food. [4]

For a fish-and-chip meal, try water instead of soft drink and add vegetables. Unsaturated cooking oils such as olive or canola fit NZ guidance; avoiding all seed oils is not the goal. [4]

Use ginger, turmeric, green tea or fermented vegetables if you enjoy them, rather than treating them as an inflammation protocol. Honey contributes free sugars and is not a necessary addition. [4]

Plant variety is useful, but 25 to 30 plants weekly is not a proven inflammation-treatment target. American Gut linked plant diversity with gut microbes, not a demonstrated reduction in CRP. [5]

Start with addition rather than restriction: berries with oats, lentils in soup, or extra vegetables with dinner. Choose one manageable change first.

A useful report should identify its scoring method and food-log period. Keep the dietary calculation separate from blood-test dates, sleep notes and training recovery observations.

CRP blood tests assess a marker of inflammation, but cannot identify its cause or location. hsCRP detects smaller increases and is also used in cardiovascular risk assessment. [2]

Joint stiffness, sleep quality and recovery can add context. They do not let a food log or hsCRP establish whether inflammation comes from diet, training, sleep or another cause. [2]

A BIA scan estimates body composition using electrical measurements and hydration assumptions. It does not measure inflammation or explain why apparent fat loss has stalled. [6]

Keep a dated record of food changes, sleep, training recovery and symptoms. Use reviews to discuss what was manageable and what needs adjusting, rather than chasing a promised deadline.

Discuss persistent fatigue, joint stiffness or poor recovery with your GP. An abnormal CRP result needs interpretation alongside symptoms and medical history, rather than a diet change alone. [2]

Discuss proposed supplements with your clinician or pharmacist, especially if you take medicines. Curcumin benefits remain uncertain, and some enhanced-absorption products have been linked to liver injury. [7]