Inflammation is a normal part of your body’s response to injuries and invaders (like germs). It promotes healing and helps you feel better. But inflammation that happens when there’s no injury or invader can harm healthy parts of your body and cause a range of chronic diseases.
Inflammation is your body’s response to an illness, injury or something that doesn’t belong in your body (like germs or toxic chemicals). Inflammation is a normal and important process that allows your body to heal. Fever, for example, is how you know your body’s inflammatory system is working correctly when you’re ill. But inflammation can harm you if it occurs in healthy tissues or goes on for too long.
When an invader (like a virus) tries to enter your body, or you get injured, your immune system sends out its first responders. These are inflammatory cells and cytokines (substances that stimulate more inflammatory cells). These cells begin an inflammatory response to trap germs or toxins and start healing injured tissue. Inflammation can cause pain, swelling or discoloration. These are signs your body is healing itself. Normal inflammation should be mild, and pain shouldn’t be extreme.
But inflammation can also affect parts of your body you can’t see. Inflammatory responses that occur behind the scenes can help you heal, but other times, they can harm your health.
There are two main types of inflammation: acute and chronic. Acute inflammation is sudden and temporary, while chronic inflammation can go on for months or years.
This is your immune system’s response to a sudden injury or illness. Inflammatory cells travel to the site of injury (like a cut on your finger) or infection and start the healing process.
Infections in different parts of your body can cause sudden, and usually short-lived, inflammation. For example, bacterial infections like strep throat and viral infections like the flu can cause throat inflammation. Other bacterial and viral infections can cause inflammation of your small intestine (enteritis).
Acute inflammation may last for a few hours to a few days, depending on your condition.
This is when your body continues sending inflammatory cells even when there’s no danger. For example, in rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory cells and substances attack joint tissues. This leads to inflammation that comes and goes and can cause severe damage to your joints.
With chronic inflammation, processes that normally protect your body end up hurting it. Chronic inflammation can last for months or years. You may have periods where it improves and other times when it gets worse.
Researchers have linked chronic inflammation to a wide range of conditions (inflammatory diseases).
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When an injury to a specific part of your body occurs, you may notice:
Chronic inflammation symptoms may be harder to spot than acute inflammation symptoms. You may have:
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Chronic inflammation is involved in the disease process of many conditions, including:
Together, inflammatory diseases account for more than half of all deaths globally.
Injuries and infections typically cause acute inflammation.
Environmental factors, including aspects of your daily life and exposures to toxins, are the culprits behind most cases of chronic inflammation. Common causes include:
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Inflammation doesn’t always need treatment. For acute inflammation, you can usually relieve discomfort in a few days by:
If you have chronic inflammation, your provider may recommend:
Yes. Prednisone is a type of corticosteroid. Healthcare providers prescribe it to treat many conditions that cause inflammation, including rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and vasculitis.
Many foods fight inflammation in your body. These include fatty fish (like salmon), fresh fruits and leafy greens, just to name a few. You may also use spices with anti-inflammatory properties, like turmeric, ginger or garlic.
Following an anti-inflammatory diet can help reduce and prevent inflammation in your body. An anti-inflammatory diet is a general term that refers to a broad pattern of well-balanced eating. You choose some foods over others and adapt the diet to your needs.
If you want to make changes to your eating habits, it’s a good idea to talk to a dietitian. They can help you create a plan that’s best for you. They may recommend approaches like the Mediterranean Diet, which research shows can lower levels of inflammation in the body. Or, they might suggest the DASH Diet as a way to reduce your sodium intake and increase your potassium.
A dietitian will work with you to craft a plan that’s doable in the long term.
While some foods help reduce inflammation, others do the opposite. Some inflammation-causing foods include:
You can’t modify many of the factors that cause inflammation. However, you may be able to lower your risk for chronic inflammation in some cases. Here are some things you can do:
Check in with your healthcare provider if you:
Seek emergency care if you have:
A note from Cleveland Clinic
Inflammation is one of those words you probably keep hearing more often. It’s in news articles. It’s on TV. And chances are, someone you know mentioned it at one point or another when talking about their health. We can’t avoid hearing about it and, unfortunately, it’s hard to avoid experiencing it. Whether it’s a short-lived injury or a chronic immune response that leads to serious illness, inflammation can affect your life in small and big ways.
Learning how inflammation can affect your body gives you the chance to make some changes in your daily life to feel better and stay as healthy as possible. Talk to your healthcare provider about your risk for chronic inflammation and how to manage any existing conditions.
Last reviewed on 03/22/2024.
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Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy