Eating Down Inflammation What to eat, where to buy it, and how

to cook it…

Amorette Reid Chef and Nutrition Specialist, Compass

Group USA

A lupus workshop by

Inflammation

• Inflammation: translated in Latin, means “to set on fire.”

• Inflammation is the body’s protective response to protect itself and remove harmful stimuli, to begin the healing process.

• Inflammation can present itself in joints, muscles, and various parts of the body.

Inflammation and Lupus

• The body's inflammation response can be triggered by a number of causes, including an infection, a foreign body, decreased or compromised blood flow, extreme heat or cold, or radiation.

• In lupus and other autoimmune diseases, the reaction produced during inflammation and repair can be exaggerated and harmful to the body.

Inflammation and Lupus

• Lupus involves chronic inflammation and is considered an autoimmune disease. Your body’s tissues are attacked by its own immune system.

• People with lupus produce abnormal antibodies in their blood that target tissues within their own body rather than foreign infectious agents.

Inflammation and Lupus

• Because the antibodies and accompanying

cells of inflammation can involve tissues anywhere in the body, lupus has the potential to affect a variety of areas of the body.

Where Lupus Affects You

• Since lupus has the potential to affect various areas of the body, many of which are in the digestive system, managing inflammation with diet has the potential to alleviate some discomforts as well as improve overall health.

Inflammation and Nutrition

• Consuming a balanced diet plentiful in fruits and vegetables, whole and varied nuts and grains, and hydrated with water can reduce inflammation and alleviate insult on the body.

Anti-Inflammatory Food Pyramid

Examples of Anti-Inflammatory Foods- Vegetables

• Bell Peppers • Bok Choy • Broccoli • Brussels Sprouts • Cabbage • Cauliflower • Chard • Collards • Fennel Bulb • Garlic • Green Beans • Green Onions/Spring Onions • Kale • Leeks • Olives • Spinach • Sweet potatoes • Turnip Greens

Veggies green or orange in color are usually considered anti-inflammatory.

Examples of Anti-Inflammatory Foods- Fruits

• Cherries • Apples • Avocados • Black Currants • Blueberries • Fresh Pineapple • Guavas • Kiwifruit • Lemons • Limes • Oranges • Papaya • Raspberries • Rhubarb • Strawberries • Tomatoes Fruits with bright vibrant colors are

easy to spot as anti-inflammatory.

Examples of Anti-Inflammatory Foods- Nuts

• Almonds • Flaxseed/Linseed • Hazelnuts • Sunflower Seeds • Walnuts • Oils of these nuts are

also considered anti-inflammatory.

Examples of Anti-Inflammatory Foods- Fish

• Cod • Halibut • Herring • Oysters • Rainbow Trout • Salmon • Sardines • Snapper Fish • Striped Bass • Tuna • Whitefish

Any fish that swims in cold water is generally anti-inflammatory.

Foods to Avoid

• Dairy (processed cow’s milk products) • Refined sugar (white sugar) • Chemical sweeteners (Splenda, Aspartame) • Red meat • Alcohol (exception: red wine) • Processed foods • Excessive salt

How to spot processed foods…

• It contains more than 5 ingredients.

• If your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize it…..it might be processed.

• It contains an ingredient that you can’t pronounce.

• It comes in a well designed and colorful box.

Tips on avoiding processed…

• When shopping for wholesome anti-inflammatory foods, try shopping the outside perimeter of the grocery store.

• Processed foods are generally in the inner isles of the grocery store.

Best places to shop…

• Farmer’s Markets • CSA’s (Community

Supported Agriculture)

• Trader Joe’s • Healthy Home

Market • Whole Foods • Harris Teeter

Cooking!

Techniques to best utilize an anti-inflammatory diet:

• Steaming • Searing

• Raw eating

Such cooking techniques preserve the quality of the foods and allow the maximum amount of

vitamins into your body.

Cooking!

• Eating fruits and vegetables raw is by far the best way to prevent loss of nutrients and to retain anti-inflammatory vitamins.

• Steaming vegetables retains a fair amount of nutrients.

• Searing in minimal oil retains a high amount of healthy fats in fish, making it easy for your body to use.

• Searing also is usually done for a short amount of time, so vitamins and minerals are preserved.

Questions!

Resources

• Dr. Andrew Weil: http://www.drweil.com/ • Smart Nutrition: www.nutrition.gov • LFA National Office www.lupus.org • LFA Piedmont Chapter: www.lupuslinks.org

– 877-849-8271 ext. 1 or info@lupuslinks.org

• Books to check out – Lupus Recovery Diet by Jill Harrington – Power Nutrition for Your Chronic Illness: A Guide to

Shopping, Cooking and Eating to Get the Nutrition Edge