These six high-inflammatory foods can cripple your energy and boost your odds of establishing chronic diseases.

The inflammatory process has a poor reputation, but it is only partly justified. When you get a cold or stub your toe, you would like the pathogen or injury to cause an inflammatory response because this is what starts the healing process. Workout also causes momentary inflammation and aids in the development of muscle mass.

The catch is that if inflammation does not subside, it "becomes a simmering flame," according to integrative nutritionist Robin Foroutan, RDN, of New York. It can cause fatigue, damage healthy tissue, and increase your risk of a variety of illnesses, such as respiratory problems, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disorder, and cancer if left unchecked.

Analyze your diet to see if you can reduce your levels. "Chronic inflammation is caused, in part, by persistent consumption of large amounts of certain foods," explains Ginger Hultin, RDN, an enrolled dietician nutritionist at ChampagneNutrition in Seattle. You don't have to eat perfectly—"It's not even like you have one piece of candy and you're inflamed," she says—but your diet's overall trend and quality are very important. With regard this your push to scale back on any of the inflammatory foods listed below.

• Meat char-grilled

Char marks and charred edges indicate that your diet includes heteroatoms amines (HCAs), mixtures that cause protein and fat to oxide, resulting in oxidative stress and cell damage. HCAs can be formed when any animal protein is cooked at a high temperature, and anyway  animal protein is likely the very worst abuser;

PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) are prevalent in cooked meat across an open flame. PAHs establish once fat and juices drip down and create fumes to adhere to the surface of your food. PAHs can also be found in tobacco smoking and automobile exhaust fumes. (Are you still hungry?)

If you relish the flavor of char-grilled meat, marinate it in a mixture of lime juice, herbs, and spices to mitigate some of the damage. Black pepper, rosemary, thyme, oregano, basil, sage, and marjoram all are full of antioxidants, which help to reduce inflammation.

• Meat that has been processed

Retain the salami, skip the bacon, and think long and hard about grabbing a hot dog. Processed food is inflammatory for several reasons, the most serious of which is its elevated saturated fat content. Saturated fat increases the inflammatory response of fat deposits in your body. These foods are also high in sodium nitrite, a substance that can be converted into nitrosamines and raise the gastric cancer risk. Furthermore, when cooked at high temperatures, they are a key cause of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) (think bacon sizzling in a pan). AGEs aggravate oxidative pressure and inflammation, which may expedite the development of age-related illnesses such as macular degeneration and Alzheimer's.

• Liquor

A glass of red champagne isn't necessarily bad; it appears to contain resveratrol, a beneficial plant compound (polyphenol) with antioxidant properties. Both these types of alcohol, including hard liquor, may be anti-inflammatory as well—at least in small doses. However, liquor is still a toxic substance, and when consumed in large quantities, it is inflammatory, according to Hultin. Alcohol causes an inflammatory response in the gut via multiple pathways, according to research, and this inflammation may help to explain why alcohol abuse is so closely known to cause cancer, liver problems, and neurological problems.

• Meals that are being deep-fried

Trans fats are largely prohibited at this juncture, but it doesn't mean you can safely order extra fries. When you deep fry foods, you generate inflammatory particles, especially if you're using the oil repetitively, as most restaurants do.

While sautéing meals at home, you should also exercise caution. Learning to cook with extra virgin olive oil is delicious, but it has a low smoke point. Lower the temperature or use avocado oil, which can resist high temperatures.

• Sweetened foods and beverages

Sugar is not always inflammatory, but a high intake of added sugar can definitely raise inflammation, according to Hultin. According to studies, people who consume 20 percent of their routine calories from sugar-sweetened sodas have high degrees of C-reactive nutrients, an indicator of inflammation. Because added sugar is high in calories but low in nutrients, eating enough of it makes it very easy to gain weight—and obesity is linked to chronic inflammation.

• Heavily processed packaged meals and refined carbohydrates

Whether it arrives in a square box and has a lengthy ingredient list, it's probably inflammatory. Processed foods can cause chronic inflammation by changing the bacteria that live in your gut. Biscuits, crackers, white bread, as well as other refined carbohydrate products quickly spike your blood sugar, triggering an inflammatory reaction as your body attempts to restore normal blood glucose levels.