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The Anti-Inflammatory Diet by Aliza Beer, MS RD CDN
Health & F tness
The Anti-Inflammatory Diet
By Aliza Beer MS, RD, CDN
Inflammation is a natural process that helps your body heal and defend itself from harm. Your immune system becomes activated when your body recognizes anything that is foreign, such as an invading microbe, plant pollen, or chemical. This often triggers inflammation.
Intermittent bouts of inflammation directed at threatening invaders protect your health. However, if inflammation becomes chronic, it will become harmful. Chronic inflammation may last for weeks, months, or even years, and may lead to a host of health problems, such as arthritis, IBD (Inflammatory Bowel Disease), Crohn’s disease, diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.
When you have chronic inflammation, your body’s inflammatory response can eventually start damaging healthy cells, tissues and organs. Over time, this can lead to DNA damage, tissue death, and internal scarring. Symptoms of chronic inflammation include body pain, chronic fatigue and insomnia, depression and anxiety, gastrointestinal complications like constipation, diarrhea, and reflux, weight gain/loss, and frequent infections. Physicians and registered dietitians recommend patients suffering from any of these health issues try an anti-inflammatory diet. This diet will help keep you healthy and prevent the development of many diseases or disorders. Let’s explore what foods to avoid and which foods to incorporate.
Certain foods promote inflammation in the body, and sugar is the greatest offender. Consuming significant amounts of sugar and high fructose corn syrup can lead to insulin resistance, diabetes, and obesity. Refined carbs, such as white bread, are easily converted into sugar in the body and will lead to inflammation and insulin resistance as well. Eating processed and packaged foods that contain sugar and trans fats has been shown to cause inflammation and damage to the endothelial cells that line the arteries. Excessive intake of alcohol and processed meat can also have inflammatory effects on the body. Dairy and gluten may cause inflammation in certain individuals. Additionally, an inactive lifestyle that includes a lot of sitting is a major non-dietary factor that can promote inflammation.
If you seek to reduce inflammation, consume fewer inflammatory foods and more anti-inflammatory foods. Anti-inflammatory foods are foods that often contain antioxidants. Antioxidants work by reducing levels of free radicals. Free radicals are reactive molecules that are created naturally by the metabolism but can lead to inflammation when they are not held in check.
Here are some foods that should be included in the anti-inflammatory diet: • Vegetables: Choose broccoli, cauliflower, kale, brussels sprouts, cabbage, etc. Fill up half your dinner plate with veggies at every meal, or about 2 cups. • Fruit: Most of your snacks should come from a tree, not a bag. Berries are the best and contain significant amounts of antioxidants and fiber. About two fruits a day are recommended.
• Healthy Fats: Olive oil, avocadoes, and nuts are the healthiest fats. They are monounsaturated fats and help fight inflammation. Olive oil also contains oleocanthol, a compound that can reduce inflammation and joint pain. Be mindful of your portions, because fat, even a super-healthy, amazing fat, is still fattening. Put olive oil in an Evo spray bottle (you can buy it on Amazon) to spray your veggies before roasting or grilling them.
Don’t eat more than 1/3 of an avocado in one sitting, and always portion your nuts to about 12 nuts or a small handful for one serving. • Fish: Certain types of fish are rich in inflammation-fighting omega-3 fatty acids, which reduce C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin-6, two inflammatory proteins in the body. Salmon, tuna, and sardines contain high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids.
Eat fish at least 2-3 times a week. • Chocolate: My favorite healthy food! Only dark chocolate and preferably at least 70 % cacao. Dark chocolate contains antioxi-
dants, but indulge in no more than a few squares in one sitting. • Spice for Life: Turmeric and cinnamon are popular spices used to fight inflammation. Turmeric contains curcumin, which is a powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. Unfortunately, curcumin is poorly absorbed into the bloodstream. It helps to consume black pepper with it, which contains piperine, a natural substance that enhances the absorption of curcumin by 2,000%.
Cinnamon contains antioxidants that have potent anti-inflammatory properties. In a study that ranked the antioxidant activity of 26 spices, cinnamon was the clear winner, even outranking the “superfoods” garlic and oregano. • Green Tea: Tea has antioxidants called catechins that reduce inflammation. Green tea contains EGCG, the most powerful type of catechin. EGCG has anti-inflammatory properties that have been shown to help relieve flare-ups associated with inflammatory bowel diseases like Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis.
In addition to diet, regular exercise can decrease inflammatory markers and reduce the risk of
chronic disease. The exercise does not need to be intense to be effective. Walking every day for 20-30 minutes is enough to shift your body (and mind) into a better place.
Getting enough sleep is extremely important as well. Researchers have found that not getting enough sleep increases inflammation. Most people find that the anti-inflammatory diet, along with exercise and good sleep, provides many benefits, including: improved symptoms of arthritis, IBS, Crohn’s disease, lupus, and other autoimmune disor-
ders; better blood sugar, cholesterol, and triglyceride levels; and an improvement in energy and mood.
One of the most powerful tools to combat inflammation comes not from the pharmacy but from the grocery store. Choose the right anti-inflammatory foods, and you may be able to reduce your risk of illness. Consistently pick the wrong ones, and you may accelerate the inflammatory disease process. As much as possible, avoid or limit refined carbohydrates and sugar, fried foods, red meat and processed meat. In addition to lowering inflammation, a more natural, less processed diet can have noticeable effects on your physical and emotional health.
A healthy diet is beneficial not only for reducing the risk of chronic diseases, but also for improving mood and overall quality of life. Remember: you are what you eat!
Aliza Beer is a registered dietitian with a master’s degree in nutrition. She has a private practice in Cedarhurst, NY. Patients’ success has been featured on the Dr. Oz show. Aliza can be reached at alizabeer@gmail.com, and you can follow her on Instagram at @alizabeer.
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