5 Foods That Decrease Inflammation
Inflammation in our bodies is caused by oxidative damage in our cells whenever they do, well, anything. It is also caused by what we eat, our environment, exercise, and infections. It is believed that inflammation is the root of all disease, especially cancers and chronic diseases. Foods which shut down inflammation, known as antioxidants, have become immensely popular recently. Here are 5 of the best antioxidant containing foods which help fight inflammation:
Blueberries: Blueberries are not only extremely high in antioxidants, but are one of the few foods shown in study to increase stem cell production. If you don’t know already, stem cells are the magical cells in our bodies that can become any other type of cell, and never die, and increasing your stem cells is one of the most potent anti-aging techniques available. Eating a cup of blueberries every day for a month will increase your proliferation of totipotent stem cells by up to 6 times.
Bone Broth: Bone broth may be one of the most important foods most people are not including in their diets. Bone stews and organ meats used to be a staple in the diets of most cultures. In fact, the meats we eat now, the muscle of the animal, was often fed to dogs by native americans while organs were considered the mainstay of the animal’s worthy meat. Most americans have stopped consuming organ and bone, and to our detriment. Organ and bone contain high amounts of collagen protein, which is not present elsewhere in the animal. Bone broth also contains glucosamine and chondroitin which are great for reducing joint pain and the effects of arthritis. Furthermore, the vitamins and minerals in bone broth are highly absorbable. Lastly, bone broth increases our own body’s production of glutathione, which is our most powerful antioxidant. Kettle and Fire is the most popular bone broth brand among health nuts, but Epic makes a great one too. You can use it in smoothies, as a meal replacement, or even a sports drink. The only caveat with bone broth is that some people who are sensitive to histamines may need to avoid it. If you think you may be sensitive to histamine, check out the work of Yasmina at lowhistaminechef.com
DHA from Fish Oil, and Algal Oil: So, fish oil is one of those things I tell the average person to stop taking and the health enthusiast to absolutely be taking. Huh? Here’s what I mean by this. The health benefits of Good fish oil are profound, but almost everyone I know who takes it isn’t taking a good fish oil. I’d guess that 99% of the fish oil on the market is not fit for human consumption. Most of it is oxidized, rancid, or made from parts of the fish not worthy consuming. There are a small handful of brands that are worth consuming. However, one of the reasons fish oil is so healthy is because of the anti-inflammatory DHA fats in it. As great as it is, there is an alternative that may have even more powerful anti-inflammatory effects: Algal oil, which is literally made from algae. It is highly absorbable and has more DHA. A good source of algae oil would be any 100% organic algal oil.
Spirulina and Chlorella: Speaking of Algae, algae itself is a phenomenal anti-oxidant and may even have detoxification properties. Spirulina and Chlorella are two algaes that can be harvested for human consumption, and they may be the two most important superfoods in existence. They have powerful nutrient content, detoxifying chlorophyll which also boosts your ability to create vitamin D. They have great amino-acid profiles as well as that healthy fat DHA we referenced in algal oil. With spirulina, you want 100% organic from a reputable source. As good as spirulina and chlorella are, if you get them from companies that use dirty processing equipment, you will consume unnecessary toxins from those facilities. Chlorella is much better for detox, but is harder to find a good source. Chlorella has a hard cell wall that needs to be cracked to become edible. Unfortunately, many companies process chlorella by blasting the cell wall using tiny glass beads. When the glass heats up, it creates a bi-product: Lead, which as you may know is an extremely damaging heavy metal. With chlorella, you need to make sure they crack the cell wall using sound waves and not the bead blasting method. If a company doesn’t advertise their method, then they probably don’t use the best techniques. There is no reason to make a higher quality product and not advertise the details. The best spirulina and chlorella products on the market are by the company Energybits. A month supply is close to $120, but the quality is so high that in my opinion they are the only source worth using. I used their chlorella product, Recoverybits, for a month, and with every handful of chlorella tablets I consumed, I felt incredible energy boosts, detoxification effects, and satisfaction of hunger.
Spiced Coffee: This one is actually a few anti-inflammatory foods in one. Quality, mold free coffee is one of the best antioxidant containing foods out there, and health guru Sanjiv Chopra, a medical doctor and brother to the famous Deepak Chopra, says drinking coffee is one of the 5 things you can do daily to live a long life. The key is to get quality coffee, and drink it black or with healthy fats like grass fed ghee, butter, coconut oil, or MCT oil. I use Bulletproof or Kion brand coffee beans, as they both test for mold toxins. It is hard to know that coffee is mold free, as most coffee is made for test, not health, but these two brands are health brand by the famous biohackers Dave Asprey (owner of bulletproof) and Ben Greenfield (Owner of Kion.) Next, I like to add turmeric, cayenne pepper, or curcumin to my coffee. These spices all three immensely lower inflammation in the body so much so that many functional medicine practitioners sell them as pharmaceutical grade supplements. Another benefits of adding healthy fats to your coffee with the spices is that the fats increase absorption of the antioxidants in the spices and the coffee. If you’re curious, look up the recipe for Bulletproof coffee and go to town. A quick run-down would be this: Get an aeropress or a metal french press (metal coffee makers are better for health, as they do not filter out as many antioxidants) and get a blender such as a nutri-bullet or stronger. An electric kettle helps too but you can also simply boil water to make your coffee. Make your coffee, then add grassfed butter and mct oil. Start with a half table spoon of each and work up to 2 tablespoons of each. Work up slowly, or you will get the infamous fat-slick condition known as disaster pants. Add turmeric, curcumin, or cayenne pepper to the coffee and blend it in a nutribullet for 3 to 4 seconds. Voila, you’ve just made bulletproof coffee. It will quell your appetite, lower your inflammation, give you some pep, and if you love coffee like I do, make you happy.
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