Designing and developing a literature-derived, population-based dietary inflammatory index

To design and develop a literature-derived, population-based dietary inflammatory index (DII) to compare diverse populations on the inflammatory potential of their diets.

Peer-reviewed primary research articles published through December 2010 on the effect of diet on inflammation were screened for possible inclusion in the DII scoring algorithm. Qualifying articles were scored according to whether each dietary parameter increased (+1), decreased (-1) or had no (0) effect on six inflammatory biomarkers: IL-1β, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, TNF-α and C-reactive protein.