When it comes to your health, inflammation is public enemy number one. The more doctors learn about it, the more they realize just how destructive it really is.

That’s the bad news. The good news is you can reduce the inflammation inside your body by getting smart about what you eat.

No matter what type of health problem you’re facing, chances are, it began with inflammation. This internal irritation causes our whole body to break down.

What Causes Inflammation?

One of America’s leading experts on preventive medicine, Dr. Michael Roizen is the chairman of the world-famous Cleveland Clinic’s Wellness Institute and the author of numerous best-selling books.He is also cofounder of the wildly successful RealAge, Inc.

Roizen said the latest research indicates inflammation is at the root of nearly every medical problem, whether it’s mild or severe.

“Whether you have a wrinkle in your skin caused by an artery being inflamed, or a wrinkle in your heart: a heart attack, or impotence, it’s really the same process,” he explained. “And it’s all caused, or at least it starts with, that inflammation in your artery.”

Roizen said inflammation is the silent killer that has eluded the medical community for years.

“It’s only recently that we’ve understood that it has a role, and only recently that it has an important or prominent role in causing diseases such as cancer, or causing diseases such as heart attacks and strokes, or of causing the infectious diseases getting out of control that we now have,” he said.

Doctors like Roizen are certain that inflammation is the source of many health problems, but that begs the question, “What causes inflammation?”

The answer: mostly an unhealthy diet. An unhealthy, highly inflammatory diet is one that includes sugary drinks, sweet food, and refined carbohydrates such as white bread, pasta, and rice.

Hydrogenated oils, also known as trans fats, also promotes inflammation. They are found in packaged foods, fast food, margarine, shortening and most peanut butter.