10:30 PM PDT on Monday, May 17, 2004

By JEAN ENERSEN / KING 5 News

KING Eating the right foods is important for health.

SEATTLE - Most people expect an occasional ache or pain, but some chronic or extreme episodes may be a warning of something more sinister.

Shelby Hawkins is an active diver, but a couple of years ago, she started feeling tremendous aches and pains.

"The pain was like taking broken glass and shoving it through my feet and through my shoulder," said Hawkins.

She saw doctors, even took cortisone shots, but nothing helped. Then she was told her diet may be part of the problem.

"I've been pretty much of a junk food junkie," said Hawkins.

So, what was the prescription that put her on the road to recovery?

"I eat a lot more fish and vegetables," said Hawkins.

"What these foods do is provide the building blocks for the body's own anti-inflammatory mechanisms," said Jack Challem, author of The Inflammation Syndrome.

Challem warns Americans are gobbling up too much processed and fast food and our bodies are paying the price.

"We are eating 30 times more of the pro-inflammatory fats than the anti-inflammatory fats," said Challem.

Experts say it's critical to reverse the ratio. Internationally renowned Doctor Andrew Weil says chronic inflammation is not only painful, it can be dangerous.

"When inflammation persists longer than it should, or if it occurs in places where it shouldn't, it itself becomes a problem and causes damage," said Weil.

While studies are still ongoing, a growing body of research shows a connection between inflammation and disease.

"This includes diseases as diverse as coronary heart disease, Alzheimer's disease, as well as the autoimmune disorders," said Weil.

To help, experts are recommending a diet high in Omega-3 fatty acids, proven to reduce or prevent inflammation.

"You want to be eating olive oil,nuts, avocados, fish - like salmon, for example," said Weil.

"It's not a fish a day will keep the doctor away. No, " said Momtaz Wassef, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, National Institute of Health.

While the National Institutes of Health says there is scientific evidence that some foods have anti-inflammatory properties, it says diseases are complex and inflammation is only part of the problem.

"You cannot really curb the disease just by modifying your diet,” said Wassfe. “It will downgrade the exaggeration or the detrimental effects, but it will not prevent the disease."

While experts debate just how important a role food can play, Hawkins says she's a believer. Since she changed her diet, she's virtually pain-free.

"I can operate like I'm in my 20's and 30's again, and it's delightful," said Hawkins.

Experts agree the culprit in all that processed food is Omega-6 fatty acids. However, there is a debate on how much of that fat we need overall and how it impacts the Omega-3's we need to fight off inflammation.

Medical experts say there are blood tests available to test inflammation in the body. If you have a family history of disease, talk to your doctor about getting tested.

Jack Challem supports a balance of Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids, but says that since the current American diet is so lopsided in favor of Omega-6 fatty acids, he calls for Americans to replace the Omega-6's in an attempt to bring the body back into balance.

Challem also says we produce some Omega-6's in our bodies, but we produce no Omega-3's. He says by ingesting extra Omega-6's, they are overwhelming, and diminishing the beneficial effects of the Omega-3's.

On the other hand, a recent study out of Harvard found that the lowest level of inflammation was found when there were high levels of both Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids in those studied. The Harvard study was published in the Journal Circulation, July 2003.

Background information on experts:

Jack Challem, known as The Nutrition Reporter, lists himself as one of the top health reporters in the United States. He has been writing about advances in nutrition, vitamin, and mineral research since 1974 and, during this time, has published more than 1,000 articles in consumer magazines.

Challem is the author of The Inflammation Syndrome, is the lead author of Syndrome X: The Complete Nutritional Program to Prevent and Reverse Insulin Resistance, The Natural Health Guide to Beating the Supergerms and more than a dozen other books. He is also the series editor of the Basic Health Publications User's Guide series of health paperback books. He also writes and publishes The Nutrition Reporter newsletter.

Andrew Weil, MD, is a Harvard Medical School graduate who also holds an AB degree in biology (botany) from Harvard University. He is a clinical professor of internal medicine as well as the founder and director of the Program in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona's Health Sciences Center in Tucson, where he is training a new generation of physicians.

He has established a nonprofit organization, the Weil Foundation, to advance the cause of integrative medicine through public policy, education and research.

Dr. Weil is an internationally recognized expert on medicinal herbs, mind-body interactions and Integrative Medicine. A frequent guest on "Larry King Live" and "Oprah," he has also hosted his own television specials on PBS. In addition, Dr. Weil is the author of eight books including the national bestsellers Spontaneous Healing, Eight Weeks to Optimum Health and Eating Well for Optimum Health.