We need you to pay attention to what comes next. This is something that we see a lot of Indians over 35 go through.
Their blood tests and health reports…are normal. But still, they report feeling “something’s off”...
Like, some feeling where you’re not sick. But you’re not “fresh and healthy either”.
You wake up groggy. You crash after lunch. You bloat after “healthy” meals.
Your gut health flips at random. You get mood swings without warning.
And when you finally run the tests, things like your thyroid, sugar, cholesterol….
they all come back fine.
So you’re told: “Everything’s normal.”
But deep down, you know it’s not.
You just can’t explain it.
And no one else seems to take it seriously.
But there is something that explains this pattern.
A slow, silent process that builds up in your body over time, and slips right past most routine blood tests.
It’s called “chronic inflammation”, and in this article, we’ll see what it is and some methods that can help with it.
The Problem With Chronic Inflammation
Here’s what makes working with chronic inflammation tricky.
It doesn’t show up loud. It doesn’t start with pain or a fever or a big scary symptom.
It shows up as….”feeling”...like your body just not feeling like it used to.
It builds slowly. Quietly. In the background.
Your gut starts reacting to foods that never used to be a problem.
You’re tired, but you can’t sleep well either. You train, but your recovery’s slower.
You eat “right,” but you’re bloated and can’t manage weight.
Your joints feel older than they should.
Your brain doesn’t fire the way it used to.
And the worst part is, it’s SO EASY to jump into a conclusion thinking it’s just age.
Or work stress. Or maybe your willpower is slipping away.
But it’s not. What you’re dealing with isn’t always obvious, but it’s real.
It’s what we call "low-grade inflammation”, and for many people over 35, especially in India, it’s already happening.
This is something that won’t spike a CRP test (a common test for inflammation) or raise a red flag at your annual health checkups.
By the time it does show up clearly on a report, it’s often labelled as something else:
Maybe pre-diabetes, or fatty liver or PCOS (in women), or autoimmune issues or even chronic fatigue.
But it didn’t start there.
It started earlier with signals a lot of us weren’t taught to pay attention to.
Do Not Ignore CI.
Most people ignore early signs of chronic inflammation because the blood tests might not back them up.
So they adjust their lifestyle alone, and do things like cutting back on carbs, sleeping longer on weekends to feel less tired, blaming stress as reason,
And slowly, they stop recognising their own baseline.
The real danger is you stop trusting your body’s signals, and it’s not your fault. No one ever validated them.
Not your doctor. Not your reports. Not even your past self.
And by the time something does get flagged, the damage isn’t “starting”…
It’s already been running quietly for years.
The fix is still possible at that stage, but now, you’re working uphill.
This is why chronic inflammation is such a threat.
It’s not painful. It’s not dramatic. It’s not scary enough to act on.
It just blurs you slowly.
Until the version of you that was clear, focused, light, and steady… starts to feel like a different person.
The Ways Forward
So what do you do when your body keeps throwing signals at you,
but your test reports act like nothing’s wrong?
You look at your day to day habits.
Because even without a diagnosis, your day-to-day habits are either fuelling inflammation, or calming it down.
Here’s where to start.
1. Stop eating all the time.
This fix is important for 2 big reasons,
First, one of the biggest triggers for inflammation is keeping your digestive system working round the clock.
If you’re snacking between meals, eating late, or grazing all day, it never gets a break.
And second, the average Indian diet, coupled with the genetic makeup of Indians is a punch in the gut for your insulin levels.
It’s an easy way to build up insulin resistance, which leads to chronic inflammation.
Start by giving your body time between meals to reset. Three solid meals. No nibbling in between.
2. Eat what your gut can handle. Not what trends/fads recommend.
If something bloats you, it’s inflaming you.
It doesn’t matter if it’s “healthy” on paper, broccoli, oats, quinoa, almonds.
If your gut reacts badly to certain foods, listen and change them.
Another thing you must keep in mind is to make sure you consume enough protein. A study by Jean Myers USDA has shown that eating enough protein can help reduce the burden of diseases/conditions that lead to inflammation.
3. Fix your sleep timing.
You need to start building a routine for sleep.
Our bodies have an internal clock called the circadian rhythm, and sleeping late, even if you sleep long enough, throws your body off.
Start winding down by 10:30 PM. Keep it consistent. No blue light. No caffeine late evening. Your recovery depends on it.
4. Move your body daily. No matter what.
You don’t need a gym. You need circulation.
Movement brings down inflammation.
A 30-minute walk, some bodyweight work, stretching, it’s enough to start.
Read more about getting started with this step here.
The key is: don’t go still for days. That’s when inflammation piles up.
Your Next Move.
Do ALL THESE for 2 weeks.
Track how your body feels. Energy. Digestion. Sleep. Recovery.
If things start shifting, you might have caught it early.
Now, it’s time to take a closer look into your blood reports,
We’ve written about how you could do that, and what tests to take.
This is your next step.
Click here to read
