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Publix GreenWise Market Magazine - Fall 2009
1-2-3 Punch
Acute inflammation can be a good thing. It’s your body’s way of kicking in to neutralize an assault, whether from an ingrown toenail or a bacterial infection.
But problems arise when inflammation becomes chronic—failing to shut off or activating when there is no trigger. Chronic inflammation can last for days, months or years, and scientists are discovering that it may be at the root of many maladies, including heart disease, metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, cancer, rheumatoid arthritis and neurological degeneration.
What you choose to eat can either rev up inflammation or help stop it in its tracks. Diets that are high in refined starches, sugar, saturated fats and trans fats may turn on the inflammation response. But a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (August 2006) found that a diet rich in whole foods, including healthful carbohydrates, fat and protein sources, along with regular exercise and avoidance of smoking, can cool things down.
In fact, researchers in that study found that filling your diet with whole foods is one of the best ways to put the brakes on inflammation. Instead of packing your pantry with refined, processed products, stock your shelves with as many foods in their natural state as possible.
“The most extensive change in the past few decades has come from manufactured foods and fast foods displacing whole foods in our diet,” says Andrew Weil, M.D., director of integrative medicine at The University of Arizona College of Medicine. “These are the foods that contain the most unhealthy ingredients.”
Focusing instead on minimally processed plant foods such as grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes can bring rich rewards in terms of fiber, vitamins, minerals and plant compounds that help protect against inflammation, says New York City-based holistic health counselor Lynn Goldstein, M.S., R.D.
“How people eat is very important in regulating inflammation,” says Weil. “It should be a lifestyle, and the earlier in life it is adopted, the better. It’s a pattern of eating to achieve optimal health through life.”
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 Best of Fats
Far from being the enemy, fats are an important part of an anti-inflammatory diet. Andrew Weil suggests you should get up to 30 percent of your daily caloric intake from fats but cautions that you need to choose them wisely. Consume mostly monounsaturated fats and sources of omega-3 fatty acids (olive oil, avocados, nuts, fish, flax, walnuts, omega-3-rich eggs and grass-fed beef). Avoid a diet high in saturated and trans fats.
It’s also important to limit omega-6 fatty acids, which are found in polyunsaturated oils such as corn, soy, safflower and sunflower. Unlike beneficial omega-3 fatty acids, omega-6s in overabundance seem to be pro-inflammatory, according to research from The Center for Genetics, Nutrition and Health in Washington, D.C. (Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2008).
The recommended ratio for omega-6:omega-3 fatty acids is about 2:1, but the average American diet provides 20 to 50 times more omega-6 than omega-3, according to Lynn Goldstein.
“If you look at the ingredient list on almost all packaged foods, you will see one or more of these [omega-6] fats used. The best thing to do is increase your intake of omega-3 fats and decrease your intake of omega-6 fats.”
The easiest way to do that? “Start doing more cooking and preparing foods from home and less eating in restaurants and from packages and boxes,” she says.
Instead of this
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Try this
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| Corn or safflower oil for salad dressing |
Extra-virgin olive oil |
| Corn chips with polyunsaturated oil |
Whole grain side dish |
| Sour cream or mayonnaise |
Mashed avocado |
| Microwave popcorn with partially hydrogenated oil |
Handful of walnuts |
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 Protein Picks
When it comes to protein, less is more. Researchers have linked the Mediterranean diet to lower levels of inflammation (Journal of the American College of Cardiology, July 2004). It’s high in whole grains, fruits, vegetables, olive oil, fish and nuts and low in red meat and meat products. In fact, Andrew Weil says that only 10–20 percent of your caloric intake needs to come from protein and points out that excess protein puts a greater workload on your body to metabolize it. “Consume less animal proteins and more plant proteins, such as beans, nuts and whole soy foods,” he suggests.
When you do choose animal protein sources, Lynn Goldstein recommends relying on poultry without the skin, fish, lean cuts of pork and game meats such as venison. Keep beef, organ meats, lamb and processed meats to a minimum. “Very few people in this country do not get enough protein. In fact, we often get too much. There is some protein in just about everything,” she says.
Instead of this
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Try this
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| Steak and potatoes dinner |
Stir-fried vegetables and tofu with brown rice |
| Ham and cheese sandwich |
Mixed vegetable salad with turkey breast slices |
| Spaghetti with meatballs |
Whole wheat pasta tossed with olive oil, tomatoes, basil and pine nuts |
| Frozen entrée |
Baked salmon |
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 Healthy Carbohydrates
The key to successfully integrating carbs into your diet—fruits, vegetables, grains, beans, nuts and legumes—is to choose them wisely. Andrew Weil suggests that about 40–50 percent of your daily calories come from carbohydrates, with the majority in the form of unprocessed carbs, which don’t produce a rapid rise in blood sugar levels. Carbohydrate foods that produce a blood sugar spike—natural and refined sugars and refined grains—may aggravate inflammation (The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, May 2008).
“Eat an abundance of plant foods in all forms, but be enthusiastic about vegetables and cautious about fruits that are high in sugar,” suggests Weil. “Fruits are good for us, but excessive servings each day, especially as fruit juice, may be misguided.”
According to Weil, a big carb trap to avoid is eating a lot of refined grains. “There is a tremendous difference between a grain that is whole or cracked into a few big pieces, which takes a longer time to convert into sugar in the bloodstream, and a milled grain that is turned to a powder, creating an enormous surface area to rapidly convert the starch into sugar,” he says.
Instead of this
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Try this
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| Processed breakfast cereal |
Steel-cut oatmeal |
| Snack crackers |
Cucumbers dipped in hummus |
| Fruit juice |
Green tea |
| Brownie |
Blueberries |
| White rice pilaf |
Quinoa |
| Packaged macaroni and cheese |
Lentil pilaf |
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