Anti-Inflammatory Foods

A healthy lifestyle begins with a healthy diet. Living an unhealthy lifestyle will eventually catch up with you and the more stress that is put on your body, from both external and internal sources, the more lifestyle changes will need to occur for optimal wellness. All these stressors cause inflammation in our body. The more inflammation in our body, the more likely we are to get sick, it’s that simple. 

When it come to our diet, there are some foods that are more inflammatory than others. Some of the most common culprits are:

  1. Sugar – more specifically processed sugar. The sugar that is naturally found in fruit is fine to consume, it’s the added sugar that has inflammatory properties. 
  2. Refined carbohydrates – White processed breads, cereals, cookies, snack foods
  3. Trans Fats –  No one should be consuming these fats as  they are the worst type of fat to consume. Trans fats not only cause inflammation, they are also know to increase your “bad “cholesterol and “lower” your good cholesterol, putting you at a higher risk for heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes. Trans fats are rarely found in nature and the majority of them are man made.
  4. Saturated fats found in animal and full fat dairy products 
  5. MSG – A food additive used to enhance flavor in many processed foods
  6. Aspartame –  An artificial sweetener commonly found in diet sodas
  7. Vegetable oils that are high in omega-6 fatty acids such as safflower, soybean, corn, sunflower oils
  8. Gluten – commonly found in such grains as barley, rye and wheat

Now that you know the foods to avoid it is best to meet with a professional to find out which foods you should incorporate to ensure optimal wellness as everyone is different and has different needs.