EATING TO "DIAL DOWN" INFLAMMATION

 Yesterday I did a post about inflammation and how it affects our bodies. Today we will start a few days posts on how to dial down inflammation. First we will look at some foods. There's an old saying, "You are what you eat." Research proves this to be more than just an old saying or words. It is very true. Here are some of the foods research shows can help slow down your body's inflammatory response.

A recent article in a Journal of Nutrition study found the dark yellow and orange vegetables are a key to eating for anti-inflammatory results. Below are some examples of these foods:

• sweet potatoes
• carrots
• squashes, especially butternut and acorn

All these foods are tasty and can be easily incorporated into ones diet on a routine basis. The reason they are helpful? They are full of carotenoids which are antioxidant plant pigments that protect healthy cells. If you have a problem with inflammation, and most of us do, some worse than others, try including more of these healthy veggies into your diet weekly. 

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EAT YOUR ORANGE AND GREEN VEGGIES

Your mother was right, you do need to eat your vegetables.  This is especially true for the orange vegetables such as carrots, sweet potatoes, yellow squash, etc which are high in an antioxidant called alpha-carotene.  This is also found in the dark green vegetables such as broccoli and green beans.  Scientists have long known that eating vegetables can ward off chronic diseases.  A study published around ten years ago in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that this alpha-carotene could very well be the reason why.  The study found that people with high levels of alpha-carotene are likely to live longer and are less likely to die of heart disease and cancer than are those with low levels.  So, enjoy a colorful veggie plate!

HOW YOU EAT YOUR CARROTS DOES MATTER

Carrots are interesting vegetables.  Are you aware the sugar content in carrots rises dramatically when they are cooked?  Also, rather interesting is how you need to eat carrots to get the most beta-carotene from them.  James Olsen (Iowa State University), a leading expert on carotenoids is quoted as saying, "If you actually nibble on a raw carrot Bugs Bunny style, you absorb very little of the carotene--about 5 percent."  He goes on to say cooking the carrots makes 25 to 30 percent of the beta-carotene available, and pureeing cooked carrots allows your body to absorb about 50 percent.

 

 This is a file photo.