12 Anti-Inflammatory Foods to Add to Your Life
Inflammation is a topic that hits close to home for me. Having been exposed to mold in my home for 4 years, my body suffers from systemic inflammation, which has caused everything from significant and unexplained weight gain to rotating bouts of tendonitis to chronic fatigue and joint pain. Inflammation in the body is not always a bad thing, and can just be a function of the body doing its job to ward off illness. However, if the immune system goes into overdrive, an autoimmune disorder and serious inflammation can result. Some examples of this are fibromyalgia and even asthma.
As with most illness and disease, inflammation can be relieved and even reversed through diet. Many foods that we consume in our typical diet can promote and even cause inflammation and disease. When looking at reducing inflammation then, it’s no wonder that many good practitioners first look to diet. When working with clients, diet is an integral part of helping to not only optimize health, but also to help resolve many health issues and concerns, including inflammation. We look at moving clients toward a whole foods diet, full of healthy and organic fruits, veggies, fats, and of course meats. Antioxidants and essential fatty acids are components that are important to incorporate when working to reduce inflammation.
12 Anti-Inflammatory Foods to Add to Your Life
As I talked about in my earlier post about forming positive relationships with food, when transitioning to a food and lifestyle change I think its important to find foods that you do like that also are healing foods for your body. Try to avoid focusing on the foods that need to be eliminated from your diet, and try to focus more on the healthy and delicious foods that you are adding to your diet. Here are 12 Anti-Inflammatory Foods to Add to Your Life:
- Leafy Greens. By now you should be eating lots of leafy greens daily anyway (and if you still need convincing read my post here), but if you still haven’t jumped on this health-wagon, nows a good time to start. Leafy greens contains numerous vitamins, nutrients and antioxidants needed to help fight disease and inflammation, and they are simply a game-changer.
- Beets. Another food rich in antioxidants, beets are also anti-inflammatory. And as a bonus, they contain high amounts of magnesium as well (see my post here on the importance of magnesium in your diet).
- Turmeric. Curcumin is highly regarded as an anti-inflammatory food, and has proven to even be more potent than aspirin. We use turmeric in tea, golden milk, and in various dishes when we can.
- Ginger. Ah, this is my favorite. A cousin of turmeric, ginger is a powerful root that also helps to fight inflammation. We use ginger daily in our lemon-ginger tea, and I add it into smoothies, soups and other dishes every chance I get!
- Garlic. Garlic is anti-fungal, anti-viral, and full of antioxidants. Among other medicinal benefits is garlic’s ability to help relieve inflammation.
- Blueberries. High in anti-oxidants, blueberries can also help fight inflammation.
- Wild-Caught Salmon. Wild-caught salmon contains essential fatty acids and omega-3s, which are potent inflammation-fighters. Fish oil and fermented cod liver oil are excellent supplements to take, especially when eating fish on a daily basis is not practical.
- Bone Broth. Bone broth, especially homemade bone broth, can help reduce inflammation and heal leaky gut (also a result of inflammation).
- Coconut Oil. Coconut oil has endless health benefits, so it’s no surprise that anti-inflammatory properties are on it’s list of ways it helps your body.
- Chia Seeds. Chia seeds can help reverse inflammation due to their anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
- Spices. Spices such as cloves, cinnamon, oregano, sage, and thyme are extremely anti-inflammatory.
- Dark Chocolate. Last, but not least, dark chocolate. Cocoa contains antioxidants and anti-inflammatory compounds. Make sure you choose a chocolate that is 75% or higher, and try to avoid any additives such as cane sugar or soy. We buy our chocolate here!
If you are suffering from inflammation and other health issues related to inflammation, we encourage you to speak with a knowledgeable professional who can help guide you toward food and lifestyle changes to heal your body. Contact us for a free consult and see how we can help you feel better and eliminate unnecessary inflammation!
