Inflammaging – The Hidden Fire Accelerating Aging and How Functional Nutrition Can Stop It
- Brainz Magazine
- Oct 20
- 6 min read
Katarina Lijovic is a Functional Nutrition and Holistic Wellness expert who successfully applies her knowledge and skills to help individuals and communities to optimize their health and quality of life.
There has been a lot of talk about longevity in the last few years, living longer, reaching certain age milestones, and adding years to our lives. But the real question isn’t how long we live, it’s how well we live. Because what’s the point of living to 90 if the last 20 years are marked by fatigue, inflammation, pain, cognitive decline, and endless visits to different doctors and specialists?
That’s where the concept of healthspan comes in, the number of years you live with vitality, energy, and mental sharpness. And one of the biggest threats to that? A silent process called inflammaging, the chronic, low-grade inflammation that quietly accelerates aging from the inside out.
What exactly is inflammaging?
Inflammaging is a combination of two words, inflammation and aging. It describes a persistent, systemic inflammation that gradually increases as we age, even in the absence of infection or injury. Unlike acute inflammation, which is your body’s healthy response to heal, chronic inflammation becomes destructive when it never turns off. It damages cells, disrupts mitochondrial function, weakens the immune system, and speeds up the biological aging process.
Modern life is the perfect storm for inflammaging:
Diets high in processed foods and refined sugars
Poor gut health and microbiome imbalance
Chronic stress and poor sleep
Environmental toxins
Sedentary lifestyle
Smoking and excessive alcohol consumption
The result? A constant, simmering inflammatory response that acts like a slow internal fire, damaging tissues, accelerating cellular aging, and increasing the risk of chronic diseases like cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, cognitive decline, autoimmune disorders, and even cancer.
How inflammaging steals your healthspan
Aging is not just the number of candles on your cake, it’s the biological wear and tear happening at the cellular level. Because it all comes down to cellular health. When inflammation becomes chronic, it affects nearly every cell and system in the body:
The brain: promotes neuroinflammation linked to memory loss and cognitive decline.
The gut: damages the intestinal lining and fuels systemic inflammation.
The hormones: disrupts cortisol and insulin balance, worsening fatigue and weight gain.
The mitochondria: impairs energy production, leading to sluggish metabolism and faster aging.
In the functional medicine world, we don’t see inflammation as a symptom, we see it as a root cause. And the beauty of root-cause work is this: what’s driving inflammaging can often be reversed or significantly slowed down.
Functional nutrition strategies to reduce inflammaging
Here’s where the functional nutrition approach truly shines. It focuses on optimizing the internal environment so the body can heal and function optimally, rather than chasing isolated symptoms.
Heal the gut, calm the fire: Around 70% of the immune system lives in the gut. When the gut lining is compromised (a phenomenon often called “leaky gut”), toxins and food particles escape into the bloodstream, triggering immune activation and inflammation. Hacks: Prioritize fiber-rich whole foods, fermented vegetables, bone broth, and polyphenols. Limit alcohol, sugar, and processed foods. Your gut will thrive, and so will your overall health.
Balance blood sugar and build metabolic health: Blood sugar instability is one of the biggest silent drivers of inflammation. Each glucose spike triggers oxidative stress and inflammatory cytokines, which over time lead to insulin resistance and accelerated aging. Neurodegenerative diseases are linked to poor metabolic health. In fact, Alzheimer’s disease has been referred to as “type 3 diabetes.” Metabolic health means being metabolically flexible, the ability of your body to efficiently switch between burning glucose and fat for fuel. That metabolic flexibility is what keeps inflammation low, energy stable, and longevity genes activated. Hacks: Include protein, fiber, and healthy fats with every meal to stabilize glucose levels. Limit refined carbs, prioritize whole foods, and avoid eating late at night to support insulin sensitivity.
Support mitochondrial health: Mitochondria are your cellular powerhouses, and they’re incredibly sensitive to inflammation. Hacks: Nourish them with omega-3 fats, CoQ10, magnesium, B vitamins, and antioxidants like alpha-lipoic acid and glutathione. Move daily and expose your body to brief, beneficial stressors such as exercise, sauna, or cold therapy, all of which build mitochondrial resilience.
Daily detox, the functional way: Forget harsh detox teas and juices. True detox happens when your liver, lymph, and gut are supported daily. Hacks: Eat cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, kale, and cauliflower. Hydrate, sweat regularly through exercise or sauna, and move your body every day. Think of detox not as a seasonal reset but as a daily rhythm that supports your body’s natural cleansing systems.
Regulate stress and circadian rhythm: Chronic stress keeps cortisol high, and high cortisol drives inflammation. Hacks: Create daily rituals that activate your parasympathetic nervous system, such as deep breathing, grounding, mindfulness, sunlight exposure in the morning, and proper sleep hygiene. Prioritize rest as much as productivity, because recovery is where regeneration happens.
Metabolic flexibility: The bridge between inflammaging and longevity
Metabolic flexibility is one of the strongest predictors of healthspan. When your metabolism can shift smoothly between using glucose and fat for fuel, you maintain balanced energy, a stable mood, and lower levels of oxidative stress.
Inflammaging and metabolic inflexibility often go hand in hand, the more inflamed you are, the less efficient your metabolism becomes, and vice versa. Supporting metabolic health through blood sugar balance, nutrient density, movement, and proper recovery is one of the most powerful longevity strategies. It not only preserves mitochondrial efficiency but also activates longevity pathways like AMPK (Adenosine Monophosphate-Activated Protein Kinase) and sirtuins, the same pathways linked to repair, renewal, youthful cellular function, and extended lifespan.
Longevity hacks from a functional medicine perspective
Longevity isn’t about expensive supplements or extreme routines, it’s about consistency in small, evidence-based habits that reduce inflammation and improve metabolic flexibility.
Intermittent fasting (or time-restricted eating): gives the body a break from constant digestion and promotes autophagy (cellular renewal).
Eat the rainbow: diverse phytonutrients from colorful plants feed beneficial gut microbes and reduce oxidative stress.
Prioritize omega-3s and polyphenols: think wild salmon, extra virgin olive oil, turmeric, green tea, and blueberries.
Build and maintain muscle: muscle tissue is metabolically active and acts as a longevity organ. In fact, muscle is often referred to as metabolic currency. Strength training reduces inflammation and stabilizes glucose. Exercise stimulates glucose uptake into the muscle cells independent of insulin. Muscles burn calories at rest, support hormonal balance, and improve insulin sensitivity.
Prioritize aerobic capacity and VO₂max: your VO₂max, the measure of how well your body uses oxygen during exercise, is one of the strongest predictors of lifespan and healthspan. Improving aerobic capacity through regular cardiovascular training (for example, brisk walking, cycling, swimming, or interval sessions) enhances mitochondrial function, lowers inflammation, supports brain health, and helps maintain metabolic resilience with age. Even moderate-intensity movement most days of the week significantly boosts longevity potential.
Activate AMPK, your longevity switch: AMPK (Adenosine Monophosphate-Activated Protein Kinase) is your body’s master energy sensor, the molecular switch that turns on repair and renewal. When activated, AMPK enhances fat burning, glucose uptake, and mitochondrial function while lowering inflammation and oxidative stress. Lifestyle strategies such as intermittent fasting, exercise (especially HIIT and endurance training), and polyphenol-rich foods like green tea, turmeric, and berberine naturally stimulate AMPK. Keeping this pathway active supports metabolic flexibility, cellular repair, and healthy aging.
Prioritize quality sleep: during deep sleep, your brain’s glymphatic system clears inflammatory debris.
Mind-body practices: meditation, gratitude, breathwork, and community connection all lower inflammatory markers like CRP (C-reactive protein) and IL-6 (interleukin-6).
Aging is something we cannot change, but we can change how we age
You can’t stop time, but you can influence how your body ages. Longevity isn’t just about adding years to your life, it’s about adding life to your years. By focusing on reducing inflammation, supporting your gut, balancing your blood sugar, exercising regularly, and managing stress, you create the conditions for a longer, stronger, and more vibrant life. Aging doesn’t have to mean decline. The key is addressing the silent fire within so you can age gracefully, energetically, and purposefully, living not just longer but better.
Read more from Katarina Lijovic
Katarina Lijovic, Functional Nutrition Counselor/Nutritionist
Katarina Lijovic is a Nutritionist and Functional Nutrition Counselor who focuses on addressing the root causes of nutritional imbalances and health concerns, rather than merely managing symptoms. By using a holistic, personalized approach, Katarina works to optimize an individual’s health through tailored nutrition plans, lifestyle modifications, and evidence-based practices. Her mission is to guide individuals toward long-term, sustainable solutions. With her focus on prevention and balance, Katarina empowers individuals to make informed choices that support their overall health and well-being.
