Inflammation is a normal part of the body’s natural defense process – it’s why surface level injuries turn red and swollen as the body tries to heal. But inflammation can also happen internally and it can be chronic, meaning that it persists way longer than it should.

You may have heard of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD); that’s when the immune system attacks the bowel, causing it to become inflamed. Gut inflammation, however, is when the lining of the gut becomes inflamed. While IBD is a serious medical condition that affects around 300,000 people in the UK, gut inflammation has become something of a buzz phrase online – part of the gut reset/detox/healing chatter that’s taken over wellness Instagram and TikTok.

As with most things online, there’s usually a grain of truth behind the most wild claims. So, what actually is gut inflammation, how serious is it, and might our diets be responsible?

Gut inflammation: is your diet creating inflammation (and if so, what can you do about it)?