Having certain foods always stocked in your house can truly make the difference in maintaining an anti-inflammatory diet. This rule has helped me tremendously with staying the course.
First – let’s revisit what inflammation is. Inflammation is the natural response of your immune system when it encounters a threat. Your body will naturally respond to the invader creating a barrier between your body and the infection, injury, or stress. It appears in our bodies to help protect us. The issue comes in when inflammation is internalized and chronic. It starts as inflammation you cannot see or feel. Over time is where symptoms may start presenting themselves. This can vary from fatigue, GI distress, joint and muscle pain, anxiety, migraines, brain fog, neuropathy, etc.
There are basic foods that are on the anti-inflammatory spectrum. They are always re-appearing on my grocery list. They are on my “always must be stocked” list. Check out some of my must-have foods below.
Berries – you will always find some sort of berry in my kitchen. I typically gravitate towards blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries. Whether it’s in the refrigerator or freezer, they are a go-to for smoothies, salads, snacking, etc. They are also perfect with my Cassava Pancakes.
Spinach |Bok Choy |Kale |Organic Leafy Greens – so many health benefits from eating your leafy greens! I do love spinach and tend to eat a lot of it. In the spirit of keeping things interesting, I have started adding in bok choy. Both in large leaf and baby leaf form. Love it! The large leaf is great for a wrap and the small leaf is perfect for a salad base. I always have at least one of the above greens in my home at all times.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil – this is my main cooking go to oil and I always have plenty of inventory. I love shopping at Aldi – I can get a 16.9 oz glass bottle of their organic olive oil for $4.49. Amazing price!
Green Tea – I try to add a cup of hot tea into my daily routine. And I go super plain Jane with it. Just hot water and plain tea. Helps curb my appetite and keeps me hydrated – loading up on anti-oxidants!
Vegetable Broth – it’s not a pretty moment if and when I have discovered being out of my organic vegetable broth. I use it in so many meals and soups. Definitely a key ingredient to have on-hand. Maybe not technically an anti-inflammatory food but it gets honorary mention due to its impact on a meal. Also great for cutting down on calories and using less oil.
Coconut Milk and Oil – confession – I used to detest coconut to the 1,000th degree! But wow, just wow have I rebounded from that harsh opinion. As my dairy free go to, it has so many versatile uses. I can make coconut yogurt with the coconut milk, put some in my smoothies, perfect for making ice cream and can’t have a cup of coffee without it. You never know – you can be a convert one day too! 😊
Cinnamon – yet another item we are not allowed to run out of. And Aldi is my savior once again. They have organic seasonings in the $2.00 range. Awesome! I use it daily in my smoothies and coffee. It’s great sprinkled over pancakes or butternut squash soup too!
Almonds – I prefer almonds in the butter form. Oh, my goodness, dare I say – I love almond butter more than peanut butter? Yes – it’s true and one of my final must have foods to always have on-hand. It’s great in smoothies, spread over Thin Stacker rice cakes (with some of those strawberries) and a dash of cinnamon or perfect for dunking that honey crisp apple into.
Sources:
- Inflammation definition: O’Bryan, Tom (2016). – The Spectrum of Autoimmunity. New York: Rodale : p. 15
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