"Challem's new book hits a home run-with the latest research on what to eat and take to defeat our real number-one cause of health problems-inflammation. It's a message of the utmost importance."
-Jean Carper, New York Times bestselling author of Stop Aging Now! and Your Miracle Brain, and columnist, USA Weekend magazine

"Treating and preventing inflammation has become a major priority and a breakthrough in today's medicine. Many of our most debilitating diseases can be traced to an inflammatory cause. The program Jack Challem outlines in The Inflammation Syndrome is a great first step in ridding your body of this deadly problem."
-Fred Pescatore, M.D., author of Thin For Good, The Allergy and Asthma Cure, and Feed Your Kids Well

"The Inflammation Syndrome compellingly shows how the typical Western diet promotes inflammation and disease. In a scientifically accurate and easy-to-understand manner, Jack Challem lays out the basic nutrition plan for good health and weight loss-a plan that mimics many features of the ancestral and native human diet."
-Loren Cordain, Ph.D., author of The Paleo Diet

"Jack Challem has hit the bull's-eye when it comes to identifying the root cause of chronic inflammation-our pro-inflammatory Western diet. Following Challem's recommendations will not only relieve inflammation, it will lay the groundwork for optimal health."
-Jo Robinson, coauthor of The Omega Diet and principal investigator of eatwild.com

"In this book, Jack Challem focuses on inflammation, the most important underlying factor in health and disease. Anti-inflammatory strategies can slow the chronic and degenerative diseases of aging-even aging itself. Jack Challem shows us how the antioxidant vitamins E and C, modifying lifestyle factors, food and nutritional supplements, and nutraceuticals can be useful in reducing the risks of inflammatory disorders."
-Lester Packer, Ph.D., the world's foremost antioxidant research scientist and lead author of The Antioxidant Miracle

But I'm not a friend of his, just a real person, so I thought I'd tell you what I think of his book.

I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes about 2 weeks ago. I've known it was coming for many years because there's a lot of it in my family. So anyway, I immediately went to my local bookstore and started looking for books to inform me about diabetes, and as I was browsing, I ran across this book.

I bought it and read it, and I believe what he says. Since I read his book I've been thinking, "If only I'd had his book 15 years ago, or ten years ago, or even one year ago." The book says that it can help prevent or reverse(among others):
heart disease - my brother is taking drugs for high cholesterol.
arthritis - I've got that. I had to start walking with crutches in the past year.
Diabetes - I've got that.
Allergies - everybody in my family has plenty of these, including food allergies of various types.
Crohn's disease - my other brother and niece have that.
Gastritis and ulcers - my mother, myself, and my son all have problems with this.
Inflammatory bowel syndrome - yep, I've got that too and so does my son.
Obesity - I weigh 365 pounds in spite of (??because of??) 30 years of dieting. And both my brothers are pretty big too.

So it was interesting to find out that there is a single underlying cause to all these seemingly disparate problems. He explains (and backs up his explanations with plenty of scientific studies) that our modern diet is so extremely different from what our ancestors were eating even 100 years ago, that we are in effect poisoning ourselves. The answer is to eat differently - more like our ancestors ate.

This means cutting out the doughnuts and the french fries. His diet plan probably isn't going to be easy in the long run. I've only been doing it for about a week, and I'm okay with it so far. But I know from experience that in a few weeks someone is going to offer me a brownie or a doughnut and I'm going to want it a lot. However, I really don't want to spend the rest of my life as physically miserable as I am right now, and I certainly don't want to go blind and lose my legs like some of my relatives have done, so I'm determined to follow his advice. Everything he says in his book makes sense to me.

I've read plenty of reviews of diet books of one flavor or another where some person writes in and says "!!!This book has changed my life. I've been on it 3 days and I know this is the diet I'll be one for the rest of my life!!!" Well, I find that a little ridiculous. But I can say that once I got past the withdrawal symptoms from not eating sugar, I've felt much better. The last 2 days I've even been able to walk short distances without my crutch for the first time in 9 months. I'm going to give his plan the old college try! 8-) More than that, I'm sending copies of his book to both my brothers.

If you've got health problems of the type described above or a family history of such problems, I think you should read this book.


Great explanation of the underlying cause of most disease   November 13, 2003
Kate McMurry (United States)
179 out of 184 found this review helpful

Jack Challem writes articles on health for both the general public and scientific publications. He is also co-author of the book Syndrome X.

The Inflammation Syndrome is divided into four parts: an explanation of the connection between inflammation and disease, including causes of inflammation; a 15-step diet plan to prevent and heal inflammation; supplements recommended to combat inflammation; and inflammation and specific diseases. There are multiple quizzes throughout the book on different causes of inflammation to allow you to see all the various ways your lifestyle may be currently promoting, or preventing, inflammation in your body. The book is written in a lively, easy-to-understand style, and the author helpfully provides a detailed table of contents, an index, extensive references, and appendices listing medical tests for inflammation and sources for anti-inflammatory products.

I strongly recommend this book to anyone interested in learning more about inflammation. Its straightforward, practical suggestions are not horrendously difficult to implement, and the author includes menu plans and recipes to get you started on his eating plan. I find his quizzes especially useful as a kind of lifestyle self-diagnosis.

If you'd like to do additional reading on this subject, another excellent book is The Inflammation Cure: How to Combat the Hidden Factor Behind Heart Disease, Arthritis, Asthma, Diabetes, & Other Diseases, by William Joel Meggs. An outstanding related work is The Body Restoration Plan: Eliminate Chemical Calories and Restore Your Body's Natural Slimming System, by Dr. Paula Baillie-Hamilton. Dr. Baillie-Hamilton doesn't specifically write about inflammation, but provides very valuable insights on the damage done by environmental toxins to the body, which both Meggs and Challem indicate are strongly implicated in causing inflammation.


Life Changing   February 13, 2005
Darlene Walker (Killaloe, Ontario, Canada)
87 out of 88 found this review helpful

This book described exactly the major problems I had been having regarding my health particularly relating to arthitic pain and asthma. I am in my late fifties and, no doubt, many of my aches and pains related to a vigorous lifestyle when I was younger (sports, etc.). I have generally enjoyed a history of basic good health and a moderately active lifestyle but have a sensitivity to many anti-inflamatory medications. I needed to look at other solutions. I started following a number of Dr. Challem's recommended lifestyle changes and dietary adjustments. Within 5 days of eating as he recommends, the swelling, heat and pain in my right foot was gone! Within a couple of weeks, many of my complaints were gone. I started to lose weight - basically a side effect of the lifestyle changes - and lost 60 pounds. Over a year later, the weight has stayed off and my general health has improved beyond anything I would have expected. Many of my friends have asked about my "regimen" and have either bought the book or are considering doing so. This book changed my life and I would recommend it for anyone who is experiencing inflammation-related health problems.


A Must Read For Anyone Who Wants Lifelong Health   July 2, 2003
Jonathan Berkowitz, M.D. (California)
48 out of 48 found this review helpful

As physicians, we have always known that inflammation has played a role in multiple disease processes; however, what is especially surprising is that the message that is emerging from the literature is that inflammation plays an even larger role than anyone expected. From heart disease to asthma to arthritis, deranged inflammation and immune response appears to play pivotal roles in the disease process. Even more important, and Jack Challem so eloquently describes, by reducing this abnormal inflammatory cascade we can help fight and prevent many of these devastating illnesses. As a physician and writer, I strongly recommend this book as essential reading to anyone who wants take control of their health and lead a long, healthy, and active life free of disease.

Jonathan M. Berkowitz, M.D.


Connecting the "-itis" dots   April 25, 2003
Jack J. Challem (Arizona, United States)
48 out of 49 found this review helpful

I am the author of The Inflammation Syndrome. My intent in writing the book was to connect many of the usually unconnected dots in inflammatory diseases. For example, obesity has a strong inflammatory undercurrent (because fat cells produce inflammation-promoting chemicals), and obesity increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Both obesity and type 2 diabetes increase the risk of coronary heart disease, which over the past couple of years has been redefined in medicine as an inflammatory disorder of the blood vessels. Chronic low-grade inflammation is one of the common denominators in these three diseases. Similarly, both rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease increase the likelihood of developing heart disease. But the real question in all this is why inflammation now appears to be so common. The reason, I believe, is that most Americans (and Westerners) are eating far too many processed foods that, because of their composition, are pro-inflammatory. Essentially, the typical American diet (which is now being shipped around the world) primes us for inflammation. To restore a more normal balance -- and to boost production of the body's own anti-inflammatory substances -- I recommend in The Inflammation Syndrome a more wholesome diet that emphasizes fish and vegetables (and include recipes as well). In addition, I recommend a number of anti-inflammatory dietary supplements that can also help restore a more normal balance. I have found that this dietary approach and the supplements have helped me, my friends, and patients of the many physicians I know. The book provides specific recommendations for about 20 of the most common inflammatory disorders, including arthritis, asthma, allergies, asthma, heart disease, skin disorders, and many others. Health be with you!