Running, Sustainability & Real Life

In my blog you’ll find pieces of my journey, reflections, lessons, and insights I hope you’ll carry with you.

27 Anti-Inflammatory Foods to Speed Recovery

12 years ago

Inflammation. It is definitely a word we are used to hearing on a daily basis. We all have little pains here or there that come from inflammation. Exercising beyond what your body is ready for will often result in inflammation. It is, after all, our bodies natural response to something being not quite right. It is usually helpful, and is a strong indicator that you changed something too fast.

Inflammation can also occur in other areas that are more serious: plaque on your heart from cholesterol, asthma, ulcers, and even cancer. When we consider these dangerous illnesses as inflammation, it becomes real, and we are left wondering what can be done to reduce it.

Most of the research found that the most important part of using food to reduce inflammation was to ensure that foods high in Omega-3s were consumed on a regular basis. However, many of the foods that contain Omega-3s also contain Omega-6. Unfortunately, Omega-6 encourages inflammation and Omega-3s reduce inflammation, which means they ultimately block one another. As I mentioned, sometimes inflammation is a good thing; your body needs that to be aware of what is wrong and right. However, many of the most common diseases are caused by inflammation from our confused bodies wondering what is going on. Therefore it is important to consume foods that are high in Omega-3s, with only a limited amount of Omega-6. The following foods have been declared best for this purpose:

Salmon
Sardines
Anchovies
Flaxseeds
Chia Seeds
Walnuts
Pasture raised meats (as opposed to conventional corn raised meat)
Canola Oil
Kidney Beans

To reduce inflammation, Vitamin E is an extremely important protective fat-soluble nutrient to add into your diet. When you combine it with the “good fat” (LDL) found in the above foods, Vitamin E works to block a destructive, but natural process called oxidation. It is an extremely important nutrient, that is often overlooked by science as a nutrient of concern; 90% of Americans do not consume enough of it. By increasing your intake, you are strengthening your line of defense to limit the damage caused by it. Intense exercise increases oxidation, and therefore can overwhelm your bodies defense. Consume these foods to increase your vitamin E intake:

Tofu
Almonds
Sunflower Seeds
Avocados
Broccoli
Kale
Swiss Chard
Sweet Potatoes
Butternut Squash
Pumpkin

As well as the sources listed above, there are other inflammation reducing Superfoods that have been researched in recent years to try to conclude their effects on reducing inflammation. If possible, you should also try to include these as they are not only powerful in their anti-inflammatory effects, but have lots of other health benefits:

- Manuka Honey (found in health food stores)
- Cherries
- Blueberries
- Lentils
- Chickpeas
- Green tea
- Ginger
- Curry powder

I know this is quite a substantial list of foods to try to incorporate into your diet, but this the purpose of this post is to make readers aware of what foods they should be consuming to maximize the bodies defense line against inflammation. It has stopped/slowed/hurt us all at some point, and if you have the potential to reduce its effects in the future, why not give your body all the help it can get?

I used several sources in this research; they are listed below.

Worlds Healthiest Fit and Health Health-Alicious-Ness Dynamic Medicine Food Navigator

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