THE MAJORITY OF THE POPULATION in the United States suffers from at least one, if not several, of these conditions, and chronic inflammation is at the root of them all. Though its symptoms often seem vague and nonspecific, this type of inflammation is like a small fire burning inside the body that, over time, gets stoked and encouraged by other irritants, taking a gradual toll on the body by damaging cells, overworking the immune system, and creating imbalances that can lead to long-term health issues. In fact, low levels of ongoing inflammation have been blamed for increasing rates of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, autoimmune diseases, arthritis, depression, and Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases.

Chronic inflammation is difficult to understand and difficult to recognize because it has no overt symptoms—making it even harder to diagnose and treat. And there’s still a lot we don’t know about it. But one thing that research does confirm is that you can prevent future diseases—as well as heal or improve most existing conditions—through food choices. Anti-inflammatory eating involves only a few small changes, and Meals That Heal will show you how delicious—not to mention easy and quick—this new healthy approach can be!