" Obesity is certainly a risk factor,” Greg replied. “But eating junk food also creates chronic inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract. The inflammatory response is good if we have an infection, but triggering it all the time by eating bad foods causes the body to produce chemicals that wreak havoc on our organs and arteries. People think that our skin is the main way our bodies interact with the outside world, but it is actually through our digestive tract—our stomach, large intestines, and small intestines. It has a surface area about the size of "

― Dan Buettner , The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest