How Do the Holidays Cause Inflammation?
A little inflammation supports the healing process. It is part of your protective process for cuts, soreness, and normal recovery. Too much, too often, leads to chronic inflammation that affects overall health, joints, energy, and mood. At OhioChiro, we are here to support you and help manage pain and inflammation this holiday season.
Holidays add several common triggers:
- Long drives and flights that limit blood flow
- Late nights and missed workouts
- Extra sugar and white-flour foods that spike blood pressure, insulin, and inflammation symptoms
- A low omega-3 to high omega-6 ratio that influences inflammatory processes
Your goal is consistency. When the background noise of inflammatory response settles, you feel steadier, stronger, and less sore.
Spine-First: Why We Start With How You Move
Your spine guides how the rest of the body moves. When it works well, physical activity feels natural and your immune system handles stress more efficiently. At OhioChiro we:
- Break up sitting with three to five minute movement snacks
- Use gentle hands-on care plus simple exercises
- Build strength slowly through patterns that protect joints
- Support sleep habits that steady inflammatory mediators
Small daily actions shift you toward calmer inflammatory conditions. This is Movement As Medicine.
Upstream → Downstream: Fix the Source, Not Just the Symptoms
Think of a river. Water clears up when you change what is happening upstream. The body works the same way.
Upstream factors you can control:
- Frequent sugar hits
- White-flour foods
- A low omega-3 to high omega-6 balance
- Short sleep and long sitting
- High intake of packaged snacks that increase oxidative stress, reactive oxygen species, and markers of inflammation
Downstream signals the body sends:
- Morning stiffness
- More tender joints
- Slower recovery after travel or workouts
- Higher readings on blood tests like C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, or shifts in white blood cells
Our approach focuses on reducing upstream load and easing spine stress. When the source calms, tissue damage slows and the downstream noise fades.
Eat Smarter
What drives daily inflammation
Inflammation connects to how processed your foods are, how frequently you spike blood sugar, and the balance of fatty acids you use every day. These inputs influence inflammatory cells, vascular permeability, and even symptoms linked to types of arthritis, autoimmune diseases, inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis, and Crohn’s disease. Cleaner choices support better immune response and steadier energy.
“Seed oils” and omega-6 explained simply
Many seed oils are high in omega-6. They show up in packaged snacks, dressings, mayo, and restaurant meals. This pattern encourages a higher omega-6 intake relative to omega-3, which links to inflammatory cytokines and chronic inflammatory diseases.
Most people already get enough omega-6. Most need more omega-3 to create a calmer baseline.
Better everyday choices
Add omega-3s on purpose:
- Fatty fish two to three times a week
- A handful of walnuts or a spoon of flax or chia
- Omega-3 eggs
Dial down extra omega-6 from packaged foods:
- Fewer default dressings and snack foods
- Read labels and pick high-oleic options when possible
Pick carbs that steady blood sugar:
- Beans, lentils, and legumes
- Non-starchy vegetables
- Slow-digesting grains such as steel-cut oats, barley, bulgur, or farro
- Fruits with fiber
- Limit white-flour products and rice
Cook simply with fats you like:
Olive oil, avocado oil, butter, ghee, or tallow work well for everyday cooking.
Lower sugar and white flour. Raise omega-3s. Choose slow-impact carbs. These changes reduce spikes that drive insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, and chronic inflammation patterns tied to heart disease, cardiovascular disease, and other long-term chronic diseases.
Why Food Affects Joint Pain
Large swings in blood sugar increase inflammatory response throughout the body. They influence nerves, joints, adipose tissue, and any vulnerable part of the body. Cleaner meals, more omega-3s, and steady movement support smoother function and fewer symptoms of chronic inflammation. Many patients also find less acid reflux, easier weight loss, and fewer flare-ups of inflammatory diseases through consistent meals and simple lifestyle changes.
A 10–15 Minute Holiday Resilience Circuit
Do this once a day to keep joints, circulation, and blood vessels feeling stable:
- Walk eight to twelve minutes
- Mobility trio: open-book x5 per side, hip-hinge drill x10, calf pumps x20
- Strength micro-dose: suitcase carry 3×30–45 seconds, incline push-ups 2×6–10, sit-to-stand 2×8
- Sleep anchor: steady bedtime and limited screens before bed
This circuit brings gentle increased blood flow, reduces subacute inflammation, supports moderate exercise, and helps you stay consistent through busy weeks.
Where Medications Fit
Medications have an important place in managing symptoms. Most work downstream on signals instead of the sources.
- Acetaminophen helps pain
- NSAIDs reduce one pathway of inflammation
- Stronger prescriptions stabilize flare-ups
- Biologics target specific signals such as tumor necrosis factor or interleukins for conditions like autoimmune disorders, systemic lupus, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
If you need medication, we coordinate with your providers. At the same time, we continue strengthening upstream factors so you depend on fewer interventions over time and avoid unnecessary side effects.
OhioChiro’s Advantage
- Physician-directed exams plus 3D Movement Mapping
- Safe Start pathway with gentle entry-level progressions
- Strength-forward plan that builds capacity, one of your best long-term anti-inflammatory tools
- Helpful tools when pain blocks training, like Class IV laser, therapeutic ultrasound, dry needling, and Kinesio Tape
- Sustain with hydration, pacing, sleep, and regular check-ins
The goal is steady capacity through the season and better overall health year-round.
Quick Holiday Swaps
- Smoked salmon, veggie trays with olive oil vinaigrette, or walnut mixes
- Salmon or trout, lentil or chickpea sides, roasted veggies, salads, flax or chia add-ins
- Dressings with olive oil, canned sardines or salmon for easy meals
- Fiber-rich fruits, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese with walnuts, or leafy greens and whole grains for better balance
These swaps support natural antioxidants, polyphenols, and polyunsaturated fatty acids that help calm the acute inflammatory response without restricting joy.
Next Steps
A small reset now sets the tone for your whole winter.
Start by booking your Spine-First Holiday Check-In, pick up the 7-Day Resilience Circuit, and choose a January cadence that fits your real life.
We’ll guide you through each step so you stay consistent, confident, and supported through the holidays. Movement As Medicine.
Author
Dr. Sean Caine, DC, DACRB, Cert. ART — Clinic Director at OhioChiro (Upper Arlington/Columbus). Our integrated Spine-First model blends physician-level diagnosis, hands-on care, and strength coaching (TASC → LifeFit) to turn “maintenance” into measurable wellness.
Science Sources
- Omega-3s help calm inflammation — Calder, Nutrients (2010).
- Most diets: high omega-6, low omega-3 — Simopoulos, Exp Biol Med (2008).
- Fish intake supports heart & whole-body health — Mozaffarian & Wu, JACC (2011).
- Seed oils are major omega-6 sources — USDA FoodData Central.
- Exercise lowers inflammatory markers — Gleeson et al., Nat Rev Immunol (2011).
- Better sleep = lower inflammation — Irwin, Annu Rev Psychol (2015).
- Fast-spiking carbs drive insulin swings — Ludwig, JAMA (2002).
- Metabolic syndrome links to joint degeneration — Courties et al., Curr Opin Rheumatol (2017).
