Inflammation is a chief cause of pain in our bodies. While some inflammation is necessary to fight illnesses and injuries, chronic forms of inflammation can contribute to disease and make you ill. One of the best ways to combat inflammation and help keep your body healthy comes from choosing foods that reduce or prevent inflammation altogether.

Whole foods are like medicine for your body. Additionally, spices can amplify the benefits of whole foods, making them taste great as well as working wonders for your health and well being. Using whole foods and spices can reduce or prevent swelling and inflammation in your body. Here’s how:

Your Body Was Meant to Ingest Whole Foods

From plants to animals, our bodies were designed to eat whole, unprocessed foods for optimal health. If you were to study the benefits of foods like fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds, legumes, and animal products, you’d see that they each contribute to health in some way. Eating whole foods, or eating clean, can help prevent illnesses and restore our bodies when they are off track.

Some of the top foods for reducing inflammation are:

• Nuts and seeds
• Leafy greens
• Tomatoes
• Fatty fish (wild-caught)
• Olive oil

Incorporating these foods into your diet can help reduce inflammation and pain while helping your body function better.

Spices Contribute to a Healthy Eating Experience While Reducing Inflammation

Spices are amazing! They can take great food and make it even better.   Adding spices to your daily diet can help reduce inflammation, and in some cases, prevent it. Most people add spices to their food to enhance their flavor, but you can choose spices for their health benefits as well. The top spices to battle inflammation are

• Turmeric
• Ginger
• Rosemary
• Cinnamon
• Cloves
• Cayenne Pepper

These spices not only give dishes a kick of flavor, but they also aid in health and wellness.

If you suffer from pain due to chronic inflammation, you can help yourself by adding whole foods to your diet. Reduce processed foods and eliminate those foods you know are causing you the most problems. Generally, these are foods like

• Fried foods
• Soda/Candy
• Processed foods
• Refined carbs
• And fatty meats that are not grass fed and finished

You can take control of your health each time you make a trip to the grocer. Make whole foods an important part of your diet and you are sure to see results for your chronic inflammation.

[RECIPE] COLD ZUCCHINI NOODLES WITH TAHINI SAUCE

Makes 2 servings

• 2 large zucchini, spiralized
• 2 tablespoons tahini
• Juice from 1 lemon
• ¼ cup water
• 1-inch piece ginger, peeled and grated (OR 1 teaspoon ginger powder)
• ½ teaspoon honey
• Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Use a vegetable spiralizer to turn your zucchini into noodles. If you do not own a spiralizer you can use a vegetable peeler. Simply peel your zucchini lengthwise down to the seeds. DO NOT add the seeds to the noodles as it will quickly turn watery. Add your noodles to a large serving bowl and set to the side.

Add your tahini, lemon juice, water, ginger, honey, sea salt, and black pepper to a small bowl. Mix well with a fork. If the sauce is too thin, add more tahini. If the sauce is too thick, add more water a tablespoon at a time.

Finally, add your tahini sauce to your cold noodles and mix well.

To Your Health,
Patti