Anti-Inflammatory Diet

Health Success Tips:
1) Eat as much organically grown foods as your budget will allow. They have 2-5x more nutrients and it will decrease exposure to pesticides, which contribute cancer, hormonal disruption, Parkinson, ADHD and other type of neurological disorders.
2) Balance your meals with approximately 30% carbohydrates mostly from vegetables, 40% protein and 30% healthy fats.
3) Eat a variety of food working toward rotating your food choices and eating the same food no more than 3 times a week.
4) Plan your meals ahead of time and try to find at least 10 recipes you enjoy and can make without extra through or preparation.
5) Drink 8 glasses of FILTERED water daily. Tap water has been found to contain pesticides, pharmaceutical and hormonal debris from flushed medications. Bottled water contains BPA, Phthalates and other plastic residues that acts as a xenoestrogen and contributes to hormonal cancers.
6) Avoid chemical cleaners resorting to more natural choices such as Seventh Generation.
7) Avoid anti-perspirants that contain alum or aluminum and choose natural deodorants. Aluminum is a toxic heavy metal.
8) Store food in glass containers. Do not store food in plastic or heat in plastic. The heat liberates the plastic chemicals and impregnates them into your food which you then consume.

Vegetables

Steamed, Roasted, Sautéed:

• Eat a variety of any and all vegetables that you can tolerate, except potatoes and corn. If you have issues with digestion, blood sugar or a desire to lose weight it is best to try to eat mostly the lower carbohydrates (3 and 6%) vegetables.

For example:
3% - asparagus, bean sprouts, beet greens, broccoli, red and green cabbage, cauliflower, celery, swiss chard, cucumber, lettuce (red, green, romaine), mustard greens, parsley, radish, spinach, watercress.
6% - string beans, beets, bok choy, Brussel sprouts, chives, collards, eggplant, kale kohlrabi, leeks, onion, parsley, red pepper, pumpkin, rutabagas, turnip, zucchini
15% - artichoke, parsnip, green peas, squash, carrot
20+% - yam
>20% white potatoes, corn (these are considered part of the starch category, not vegetables)

•Eat a lot of veggies in a rainbow of colors. The colors of your vegetables, orange, red, dark green, light green, purple, and yellow are created by different phytonutrients. The greater the variety of color you eat, the greater the nutrient intake you have! In addition, the cruciferous family of vegetables contain indole-3-carbinol, a proven breast cancer fighting agent. However, if you have hypothyroid make sure you cook your cruciferous veggies as to prevent interfere in your thyroid hormone function. The only vegetables you have limits on are potatoes and corn.

• If you have a GI symptoms such as heartburn or IBS cooking your vegetables will improves the utilization and availability of the food nutrients allowing the GI mucosa to repair itself. Use minimal raw vegetables except as a salad. Include at least 1 green vegetable daily.
• Juice with raw vegetables and small amount of fruit 2 plus times per week. Carrot, beet, parsley and small amount of apple is a good staple.
• Add ginger and garlic to your food. You can also get ginger by making ginger tea.
• Add your favorite spices to enhance the taste of your vegetables. Spices contains healthy anti-oxidant nutrients.

Grains

• Allowable grains are: amaranth, buckwheat, millet, gluten free oatmeal, quinoa, basmati or brown rice, and wild rice. Eat a maximum of 1 cup of cooked grains per day (not on the avoid list below) and a maximum of 1/2 cup at one sitting.

• It is easy to overeat rice, so be careful, especially with findings of it being high in arsenic. Originally it was thought the only rice of concern was the rice grown in China and India, but the rice grown in Texas was also found to have high arsenic.
• If you have high insulin, high blood sugar, are overweight, have high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes or you have an autoimmune condition, you should avoid grains. If that is beyond your present commitment level, then limit your grains to one ½ cup servings each day and avoid all flour based products (i.e. breads, crackers, cereals, noodles etc.).

Legumes

• Eat a variety of any legumes if you are able to tolerate them. Legumes are very high FODMAP so if you suffer from a lot of bloating, gas and heartburn it is best to avoid legumes.

• If you do eat them soak them for 48 to 72 hours and cook slowly: split peas, lentils, kidney beans, pinto beans, black beans, mung beans, garbanzo beans, and adzuki beans. It is ok to eat canned organic beans. Most of the organic beans do not have the added chemicals to preserve the beans and most say beans and salt. A word of caution on all canned food. Most cans are lined with a chemical called BPA. It is a known xenoestrogen and can increase risk factors associated with female endocrine cancers as well as other concerns that you can read about here.
For canned beans both Trader Joes and Eden are BPA free. Eden is also pre-soaked.

Protein Sources

Fish
• Poach, bake, steam, or broil wild fish. Wild Alaskan pacific salmon is preferred.
• Eat wild fish 2x/week.

Chicken/Turkey
• Eat only free range organically grown chicken/turkey. Bake, broil or steam.

Meats
All free-range grass-fed animals including lamb, buffalo, venison, elk and beef are ok.

Eggs
Choose grass-fed pastured eggs. These eggs contain higher amounts of vitamins A, B12, E, folate, beta-carotene, and essential fatty acids and typically do not contribute to elevations in cholesterol due to their lecithin content. You can find them at Chucks, Fred Meyer nutrition center, New Seasons, and Natural Grocers. A word of caution. Avoid high EFA eggs. They have been found to oxidize (go rancid) much faster than grass fed eggs and when the yolks are heated the oils become damaged which is dangerous to your arteries and brain cells.

Fruit

• Eat only 1 or 2 pieces of practically any fruit except citrus. If you have digestive challenges, eat the fruit baked (such as a baked apple or pear). If you have GERD, elevated insulin, diabetes or desire to lose weight, try to eat mostly the low carbohydrate fruits.

For example:
3% - cantaloupe, rhubarb, strawberries, melons
6% - apricot, blackberries, cranberries, papaya, peach, plum raspberries, kiwi
15% - apple, blueberries, cherries, grapes, mango, pear, pineapple, pomegranate
20+% - banana, figs, prunes

Sweeteners

• Occasionally maple syrup, raw honey, stevia or monk fruit – use only with meals.
• Absolutely no sugar, NutraSweet, Splenda, Sorbitol xylitol, erythritol, Saccharine, or any other sweeteners are allowed.

Seeds and Nuts

• Grind flax, pumpkin, sesame or sunflower seed and add to steam vegetables, cooked grains etc. You may also eat nut and seed butters – brazil, cashew, almond, macadamia, sesame, etc.

Butter/Oils

• Use Kerry Gold butter which is imported from Ireland and made from cows that graze on grass. To reduce the saturated fat mix together 1 pound of organic butter and 1 cup of extra virgin olive oil (California Ranch has been tested for Olive oil purity). Whip at room temperature and store in the refrigerator.
• Use extra virgin olive oil for all other situations requiring oil. Use coconut oil for sautéing.

Spices

• To add a delightful flavor to your food choices, add whatever spices you enjoy.
• Trader Joes has a variety of inexpensive spice mixes to give your food variety of flavor. If using salt I prefer Celtic sea salt, “Reel salt,” or Himilayan pink salt. If the sea salt is pure white it has been bleached and stripped of minerals.

Drinks

• A MINIMUM of 6 to 8 glasses of spring, filtered or reverse-osmosis filtered water every day. Do not drink tap water. Drink ½ your body weight in ounces of water daily. Sip the water, try to drink 1 glass per hour. NO distilled water which pulls minerals from your body.
• Small amounts of coconut or almond milk are allowed. Make sure they do not contain carrageenan.
• Drink green tea daily. The antioxidants in it, particularly EGCG, can prevent oxidative damage to your cells.
• Drink 2 cups of ginger tea daily. You can make it from sliced root or from tea bags. The tea bags will be less potent.

Avoid the Following:

All Dairy products including animal milks, yogurt and cheeses
Commercial eggs (pasture fed ok)
All wheat products
White flour, enriched or unbleached flour, semolina, Durham
Peanuts/peanut butter
Meat (grain-fed animals, grass fed ok, see above)
All animal cheeses
Potatoes - red or white (small amounts ok if your practitioner has stated so)
Breads (even rice)
Any processed food
All corn products
Tomatoes (if joint issues, pain, or autoimmune problems are a problem)
Citrus fruits
All dried fruits
Fried foods
All fruit juices
Coffee
Alcohol