A few weeks ago I shared a little bit more about chronic inflammation and how I deal with living with autoimmune diseases and chronic illnesses.
One of the ways I combat the inflammation is by keeping my diet full of anti-inflammatory nutrition that is also full of anti-oxidants and phytonutrients. If you are like me and have suffered from any autoimmune diseases, chronic pain, chronic disorders, heart issues, gut health issues or other inflammatory conditions, adding in some of these simple, whole and healthy foods will help you.
Can changing my diet improve my health?
Yes, of course. We truly believe that by eating a whole, clean diet you can drastically improve your health and all 3 of us, Ivy, Madison and I are living proof of what that looks like.
Inflammatory Foods
Inflammatory foods, sadly, can be largely summarized in the definition of a typical American diet. Refined sugar, processed foods, alcohol, cheap meat, and so on are all incredibly inflammatory for our bodies. They are huge contributors to the health crisis in our culture, and are often falsely advertised as nutritious.
What are the best Anti-inflammatory Diets?
The Mediterranean diet is one of the most well-spoken about diets to reducing inflammation – however, if you’re not a big fan of shellfish or can’t have nightshades, it can create a problem since the diet calls for several servings of these.
Another option is just to eat clean; as we suggest here at Clean Cuisine. In my article about chronic inflammation I go into more detail, if you’re interested in learning more.
6 Anti-Inflammatory Foods I Eat Weekly
#1: BLUEBERRIES
All blueberries are superfoods and full of delicious anti-inflammation properties, but wild blueberries, pack a much bigger nutrition punch than your typical cultivated blueberry. They even taste better!
I add blueberries to almost all of my daily smoothies lately and our favorite brand is Wyman’s. Luckily, Wyman’s sells frozen wild blueberries that are wildly available across the country. Within hours of being picked, Wyman’s sorts and cleans their wild blueberries using state-of-the-art technology that preserves flavor, quality and antioxidant goodness.
Blueberry Recipes to check out:
#2: ASPARAGUS + BRUSSEL SPROUTS
There are so many ways that asparagus and brussel sprouts can improve your health. They both possess anti-inflammatory properties and are high in antioxidants, which help to neutralize the free radicals that can cause the inflammation we’re trying to reduce.
I prefer mine roasted.
So, I grab a stainless steel sheet pan or my trusty Pampered Chef stone sheet pan. I wash my vegetables, prepare them for cooking, add some barlean’s extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle lightly in sea salt. I roast for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees.
If you watch any of our Instagram stories, you’ll see that I am always roasting these and use them throughout the week on salads and in meals. It’s such a great way to get the full benefit of these delicious and nutrition vegetables.
#3: KALE
This incredible anti-inflammatory and nutritious superfood can supply about 10 percent of the recommended daily amount of anti–inflammatory omega-3’s in just 1 cup. Isn’t it worth trying it out?
Kale is now a regular staple in our home and I add it to everything that I can. Chili’s, soups, smoothies. Whatever I’m cooking, I try to toss in a few cups for our meals.
Kale recipes to check out:
#4: FATTY FISH
Eating fatty fish like salmon and sardines is not only anti-inflammatory but it also provides you with a good source of omega 3’s.
We love to serve a few dishes each week with fatty dish and here’s some great recipes from Ivy that are sure to help add fish to your diet.
Fatty Fish recipes to check out:
Slow Cooked Salmon with Citrus
#5: TURMERIC
A potent anti-inflammatory that exhibits over 150 potentially therapeutic activities, including antimicrobial activity as well as potent anti-cancer properties, turmeric is the star ingredient in Ivy’s Golden Milk Chai Latte recipe.
To give myself a boost, I started taking Integrative Therapeutics Theracurmin which has 27x the Bioavaliable Curcumin and Turmeric-27 times higher bio-availability when compared to ordinary curcumin powder.
Turmeric recipes to check out:
Turmeric-Orange Smoothie (or popsickle!)
#6: HEALTHY, CLEAN OILS
Of course, what we cook with and the bases we use in dressings and for baking must be clean too. So, when I am suggesting you roast your vegetables or make any of the recipes above, we only want to suggest the very best.
The best thing about coconut oil is that it’s not only clean and delicious but it’s also been found to have an anti-inflammatory effect and be a pain reliever as well. Coconut oil may ease inflammation by improving antioxidant status.
Healthy, clean oils we trust:
Barlean’s Extra Virgin Coconut Oil
THRIVE Market Extra Virgin Olive Oil
I would love to know what ways you incorporate some of my top 6 into your diet or new anti-inflammatory foods to add to my list.
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