When most people hear the word “inflammation,” they think of the pain, redness, and swelling associated with conditions like arthritis. They picture something that you can readily observe. However, chronic inflammation occurs on the inside of tissues and may be deadly. After all, it’s linked to heart disease, dementia, diabetes, and cancer. In a recent study of over 68,200 men and women (between the ages of 45 and 83) that were monitored for 16 years, subjects that ate an anti-inflammatory diet had an 18% lower risk of dying from any cause (including cardiovascular disease and cancer) compared to subjects who did not follow the diet as closely. Participants who smoked but also ate an anti-inflammatory diet still reaped some of the benefits in comparison to smokers that did not follow the diet. An anti-inflammatory diet is similar to a Mediterranean diet, which is plant-based and includes foods that help to prevent or reduce cellular inflammation.