From mbg
by Dr. Josh Axe | September 19, 2015
10 Anti-Inflammatory & Disease-Fighting Foods
Inflammation gets a bad rap, but it isn’t always bad. As a necessary bodily function for preventing illnesses, treating injuries, and healing wounds, inflammation (at least some degree of it) keeps us strong and healthy.
It’s when the immune system starts overacting and begins attacking healthy body tissue that inflammation can lead to a whole host of problems — from weight gain to autoimmune disease, dementia, and even cancer.
High stress levels, food allergies, smoking, and environmental factors can all increase inflammation, but a poor diet is likely the biggest offender. Luckily, a healthy diet that is free of common digestive triggers can counteract the damage, reduce free-radical damage, flush toxins, and speed healing.
Here are 10 anti-inflammatory foods to include in your diet as often as possible:
1. Leafy green vegetables
Dark, leafy greens like kale, spinach, bok choy, and Swiss chard are rich in flavonoids (powerful, plant-based antioxidants) that restore cellular health, which is essential to stopping inflammation.
In addition, they provide vitamins A, C, and K, which protect your brain against the oxidative stress caused by free-radical damage — the same process that causes aging and disease development.
2. Probiotic foods (sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, yogurt, kefir)
A very large portion of your immune system actually lives within your gut and is run by bacterial organisms — what you can think of as “your gut’s bugs.”
Microbial imbalances (when the bad bacteria outnumber the good) have been associated with heightened inflammation and increased risk of various diseases, but probiotic foods like sauerkraut and kimchi can help rebalance and heal your gut.
Probiotics are also linked to improvements in immune, cognitive, digestive, and endocrine system functions, and taking probiotics can even cheer you up!
3. Bone broth
Bone broth — the rich liquid that results from boiling the bones of organic, grass-fed beef or poultry for hours — comes packed with a number of nutrients, including collagen. Collagen and the amino acids proline and glycine work in unison to heal the lining of an inflamed gut, which quickly stops your immune system from acting on overdrive and attacking the body’s healthy tissues, from the skin to the brain.
Bone broth is also a great natural source of chondroitin sulphates and glucosamine — the same compounds sold as expensive over-the-counter supplements used to limit arthritis and joint pain caused by inflammation.
4. Walnuts
Read more mbg >>
by Dr. Josh Axe | September 19, 2015
10 Anti-Inflammatory & Disease-Fighting Foods
Inflammation gets a bad rap, but it isn’t always bad. As a necessary bodily function for preventing illnesses, treating injuries, and healing wounds, inflammation (at least some degree of it) keeps us strong and healthy.
It’s when the immune system starts overacting and begins attacking healthy body tissue that inflammation can lead to a whole host of problems — from weight gain to autoimmune disease, dementia, and even cancer.
High stress levels, food allergies, smoking, and environmental factors can all increase inflammation, but a poor diet is likely the biggest offender. Luckily, a healthy diet that is free of common digestive triggers can counteract the damage, reduce free-radical damage, flush toxins, and speed healing.
Here are 10 anti-inflammatory foods to include in your diet as often as possible:
1. Leafy green vegetables
Dark, leafy greens like kale, spinach, bok choy, and Swiss chard are rich in flavonoids (powerful, plant-based antioxidants) that restore cellular health, which is essential to stopping inflammation.
In addition, they provide vitamins A, C, and K, which protect your brain against the oxidative stress caused by free-radical damage — the same process that causes aging and disease development.
2. Probiotic foods (sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, yogurt, kefir)
A very large portion of your immune system actually lives within your gut and is run by bacterial organisms — what you can think of as “your gut’s bugs.”
Microbial imbalances (when the bad bacteria outnumber the good) have been associated with heightened inflammation and increased risk of various diseases, but probiotic foods like sauerkraut and kimchi can help rebalance and heal your gut.
Probiotics are also linked to improvements in immune, cognitive, digestive, and endocrine system functions, and taking probiotics can even cheer you up!
3. Bone broth
Bone broth — the rich liquid that results from boiling the bones of organic, grass-fed beef or poultry for hours — comes packed with a number of nutrients, including collagen. Collagen and the amino acids proline and glycine work in unison to heal the lining of an inflamed gut, which quickly stops your immune system from acting on overdrive and attacking the body’s healthy tissues, from the skin to the brain.
Bone broth is also a great natural source of chondroitin sulphates and glucosamine — the same compounds sold as expensive over-the-counter supplements used to limit arthritis and joint pain caused by inflammation.
4. Walnuts
Read more mbg >>
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